


Kijuu Sentai Qidenger

by Androzani84



Category: Super Sentai Series
Genre: Character Death, Multi, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:47:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 51,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26899171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Androzani84/pseuds/Androzani84
Summary: 15 years ago, the the Night of the Crimson Sky came and went. Though no-one knew it, a demon known as Mairak emerged to destroy the world, only to be repelled.Now, his Dimension Destruction Army Voldos has returned to carry out his task. It is up to young new warriors to fight the new threat.
Kudos: 1





	1. Awakening! The New Generation Warriors.

_**15 Years Ago. The Night of the Crimson Sky.** _

_The whole world was on fire. The skies were glowing a demonic red and the streets, almost devoid of life, were burning. A sole man, middle-aged, stood against his opponent, the demon known as Mairak, and his army of Vordoron Drones. Mairak had an appearance that could best be described as a cross between a blooming rose and a moth, while the Vordorons had a larvae like appearance. “Are you ready to surrender, human?”, Mairak asked his opponent. “This dimension is but mere moments away from falling before the might of my Vordos Empire.”_

_“You won’t win.”, the man wheezed, holding up a wrist-mounted gadget on his left arm. “Not while I can still fight.”_

_Mairak laughed. “What can you do? Your comrades lie dead at my feet, your world is in flames and I have taken your power for myself.”_

_“That power, yes.“, the man said in response, as he held up a coin-shaped item with an engraving of a Wolf on it. “But I can still use another.” He inserted it into the item on his wrist, declaring “Kijuu Henge!” (Machine-beast Change)_

_“ **Ookami**! (Wolf) **Error**.” The man crackled with energy, as he charged at Mairak, who’s last sight was the man who in one move, had thwarted his path of conquest._

* * *

**Now**.

Hajime Takuto woke up, falling out of bed. “That same dream again.”, he said to himself. “What does it mean? Could it be something to do with the night of the Crimson Sky? Could it be why Father…?”

“Takuto-san.”, his mother called from downstairs. “Mio-kun needs someone to take her to school. I’m too busy and Daiki is meeting with his associates.”

“By ‘associates’, he means ‘criminal friends’.”, Takuto commented. He had always been suspicious of his stepfather, to the point of following him to a meeting with his “associates”, where he had found out the truth. He never said anything since Otonaru Daiki had been a fairly clean person at home, making it hard to find positive proof. “I’ll be down soon, Mother.”, he called back, reaching for some clothes. “Looks like today will be as uninteresting as ever.”

* * *

Elsewhere, a large fortress, shaped like a demonic head, emerged from a portal, setting down in a chasm. Inside the fortress, a short robot, wearing an approximation of a scientist’s outfit with a panicked expression permanently formed on his face. “I’ve nearly done it.”, he stated in his squeaky voice. “I’ve managed to create a method of increasing molecular size and weight. _I am a genius._ ”

“Don’t revel in your little toy just yet, Megaro.” The small robot, Megaro, turned to see the newcomer. This was Calam, an oni-esque creature with armour on his left shoulder and right shin, a scar down his chest and a permanent scowl. “I won’t be convinced of its worth until I’m sure it can work on my guys.”

“Your ‘guys’ aren’t all we should be relying on.” Both turned to the third voice that joined them. It belonged to a female monster, resembling a blue lion, wearing a dress that resembled ice cream in a cone. Her face was permanently in what could be called a smile, for someone with a lion’s face. She also had hair that resembled a punk rock haircut. “After all, remember that we’re all equals within the ranks of Voldos.”

Calam growled again, brandishing his sword, which had jagged edges. “Nobody asked your opinions, Gelashi. And if you’re willing to go for it you Neko, you’ll find yourself as blood on my sword.”

Gelashi tutted, brandishing her claws. “You really think you can beat me, Oni? Well then, let’s see who ends up as blood on who.”

Enough!” All three turned towards the new arrival. A middle-aged humanoid woman, wearing a black dress and crown that resembled a Phoenix. She was accompanied by her servant, a humanoid Wolf bound in chain mail , a burn Mark on its left arm. This was Voldos’ leader Queen Moboroshina and her huntsman Oomikaoo. “I don’t want any of my commanders engaging in needless bickering.”, Moboroshina said, angry at the two. “Either you two work together to ensure our late leader Mairak’s ambitions are met, or I’ll allow Oomikaoo to make you his prey.”

“I’m sorry, Lady Moboroshina.”, Gelashi said as she changed her tune, bowing her head. “I won’t cause arguments again.”

Calam on the other hand was less quick to give up his anger. “Why should I even listen to you? You claim to continue Lord Mairak’s will, but I know you can’t possibly come from the Vordos Dimension. We don’t have creatures like you.”

“I’ll point out that none of us bar you and your pets are from that dimension.”, Gelashi said in response. “Speaking of which, what better to use as a test subject for the new device?”

“Indeed.”, Moboroshina nodded. “Calam. If you want to prove your worth, then you should send out one of your Vorjuu to the human world.”

Calam growled. “Well, since you suggested it. _Come on_ , VolKraken!” He slammed his sword into the ground. A reptilian monster, sporting long arms and a long neck, emerged from the darkness, snarling. “VolKraken, you will go down to the planet and begin the dimension destruction plan. _Go_.” The beast growled and turned away, walking off.

* * *

Down on Earth, Takuto was escorting his sister, Otonaru Mio to her high school. She was technically the daughter of his father, Hajime Tatsuhisa, but because his mother had married Daiki to provide her second child with a father, she had legally taken his name. “Hey big brother, what’s got you so down?”, Mio asked. “Did you have that dream again?”

“Not just that.”, was Takuto’s answer. “I keep getting this feeling. Like something terrible is about to…” He suddenly stopped, feeling a strange wind blowing. “I’m sorry.”, he said to Mio as he turned and set off running in a different direction.

“Eh? Big brother, wait!”, Mio called out as she ran after him.

* * *

Across town, VolKraken was causing destruction, aided by a group of Vordorons. It was firing beams from its mouth to destroy buildings, blow up cars and create holes in the pavement. It was at that moment two passers-by, a young man in a yellow jacket and a young woman, stopped to fight the two. “Hey you, stop right there.”, the woman declared as she pointed at the Vorjuu, grabbing its attention. “Your rampage won’t be allowed to continue.”

“Agreed.”, the man nodded. “This ends here.”

Before either of them could do anything, Takuto came running to the scene, proceeding to beat up VolKraken, who managed to defend itself expertly. “Hey, Vorjuu, I’m not going to let your rampage continue.” He then paused, realising what he had just said. “How did I know what that thing was?”, he asked himself.

From the side, a mysterious onlooker observed this. “It’s him. Could he be?”

Mio then came running up, out of breath from the long distance. “Brother, you shouldn’t just go running off like that. What would mother…” she paused, getting a good look at VolKraken and it’s retinue “think?”

VolKraken motioned for its retinue of Vordorons to attack the four humans. Takuto, Mio and the other two made quick work of the grunts using basic hand-to-hand, but then they faced VolKraken itself. Though they tried their best, none of the 4 could match the beast in combat, being quickly overwhelmed. Having knocked it’s enemies back, VolKraken opened a portal and jumped into it, making its getaway. “What was that thing?”, the woman asked.

“This guy called it a ‘Vorjuu’.”, the man said, indicating Takuto. “But I want to know how he knew that.”

Takuto picked himself up. “If I’m honest, I don’t know. It just slipped out.”

“I think I know someone who can explain.” The man in the shadows said, stepping out to reveal himself. “You’ll have to come with me.”

Mio was in shock at the newcomer. “Kamijo-san.”, she commented.

Takuto on the other hand was more apprehensive. “You! What are you doing here?”

“Right now, I’m trying to help avert a great threat to the world as we know it.”, the man known as Kamijo answered him. “For now, I ask that you put aside any feelings you have for me, Hajime-san, and accompany me. That includes you three as well.”

* * *

Back at the Voldos Fortress, the three Commanders we’re discussing the recent fight with their Queen. “Why did VolKraken retreat?”, Moboroshina asked. “He had those youths on the ropes.”

“An unfortunate part of the intense training I put the beast through to secure its allegiance.”, Calam said in response. “It believes that in order to fight effectively, it requires help, no matter how strong it is compared to its opponents.”

“Then perhaps we should send something stronger than mere Vordorons.”, Gelashi suggested. “Perhaps I should accompany VolKraken-chan in its next attack.”

“Not on your own.”, Moboroshina insisted. “I’m going to lend you the use of Oomikaoo. He is viciously dedicated and will not fall until all of his opponents are dead.”

“The Queen is most gracious.”, Gelashi bowed. “So, _shall we go_?”

* * *

Back with VolKraken’s opponents, they had been taken to a mansion and made to sit in the living room, while the man known as Kamijo had left to do his own thing. “So, since we’re stuck waiting here, we might as well the discuss a few things.”, the other man said. “First off, who is the guy that brought us here? You two seem to know him.”

“He’s Kamijo Ryosuke, an associate of my father.”, Mio answered. “Stepfather really. I never knew my real father, since he disappeared soon after I was conceived. Only my brother knew him and his memory isn’t that good.”

“Kamijo’s also a criminal.”, Takuto stated, much to Mio’s shock. “He and Otonaru Daiki’s other associates meet to plan things such as robberies, extortion, murders and other illicit activities. I know they’re guilty, but I have nothing on them besides having seen one of their meetings.” Mio was shocked to hear about this side of her stepfather she had known nothing about. “Anyway, since we’re discussing names, we might as well learn each others’. I’m Hajime Takuto and this is my sister Otonaru Mio.”

“Wataru. Shinohara Wataru.”, the other man introduced himself. “I’m a student at Science Academia, currently on a break to work on a project. I guess I’ll have to apply for a longer break, depending on what happens to us.”

The other woman introduced herself next. “I’m Komaki Hibiki. I’m an assistant music teacher at an elementary school. I’m sorry to hear about your missing father, Takuto-san, Mio-chan. My own mother’s been gone for a long time. I ended up growing up in a children’s home.”

It was at this point that Kamijo Ryosuke re-entered the room, accompanied by an older man. “Nice to see you’ve all made your introductions.”, he said. “But now, I’d like you to meet our benefactor.”

“Oh, so you think we’re going to just help you with whatever criminal pursuit you’ve cooked up, Kamijo-san?”, Takuto said angrily. “Not likely. And who is this anyway?”

“I prefer to keep my identity out of this matter, _Mr. Hajime_.”, was the old man’s response. “But I can assure you, my intentions are well within your laws.”

“And what are these intentions?”, Hibiki asked. “What could you possibly want the 4 of us for, in addition to Kamijo-san?”

“I need your help to save the world.”, the old man answered, going over to a bookcase, pulling one of the books, this caused a portrait on the walls, depicting the Shinto gods Izanagi and Izana, to retract, revealing a compartment with five cellphone-like devices, which had 5 cards next to them.

“Cellphones?”, Mio said as she picked one of them up and began examining it. “Has Oji-san been out in years? Cellphones are set of… outdated.”

“They are not mere cellphones.”, the old man snapped. “Perhaps one of you would care to pick up one of these cards?”

Wataru shrugged. “Might as well.”, he said as he picked up one of the cards. “After all, being a scientist is about taking risks.” The card in his hand glowed, before manifesting a yellow silhouette on it. “How curious.” He picked up on of the cellphone devices, finding a slot, into which he inserted the card.

“ _ **Yellow, recognition confirmed**._” The cellphone announced.

“These are the JuuKeitai (Beast Cellphone), a set of henshin items I created to harness the powers of animals within the human body. They work by equipping a _powered suit_ that fuses the power of an animal within these Soul Chips.” The old man held up a coin shaped item, featuring an engraving of a lion. “Each of these Soul Chips features the _life energy_ of a creature that exists. The suits can harness the power, but be warned. If you try to transform with a Soul Chip that has a less than 49.9% fusion compatibility, the essence of the contained animal will overwhelm your body and mind, making you a beast.”

“I assume you intend for the 5 of us, Kamijo-san included, to take these up and what? Fight the invaders?”, Takuto asked.

“Exactly.”, Kamijo nodded. “I hope you can put aside your animosity to me to help save the day, Hajime-kun.”

Takuto fumed at this casual addressing, but before he could act on this, he felt that same wind again. “They’re here again.”, he said, taking one JuuKeitai and one of the ID cards, creating a red silhouette on it, before running out.

“Well, we’d better follow him, if he really knows the way.”, Wataru stated. The others all fist-pumped and nodded, picking up the gear and setting out.

* * *

In the city, VolKraken was attacking once more, assisted by Oomikaoo and Gelashi. Several people were running, looking for cover. “Yes, tremble human filth.”, Gelashi declared, laughing like a noblewoman. “Your pitiful dimension will soon be gone from existence.”

“Stop it.” The attack party turned to see Takuto running towards them. “Vordos, your rampage will end here.”, he blurted out. Oomikaoo observed the newcomer, getting a flash of recognition before shaking it off.

“Ah, the human youth that was beaten by VolKraken-chan before. You really think you can make a difference by yourself.” Gelashi commented, before laughing once more.

“He’s not by himself.” Gelashi turned to see the other 4 appearing. “So, you’re the ones behind that monster.”, Wataru noted.

“Indeed. We are the Dimension Destruction Army Vordos. And I am Gelashi, one of the Three Demon Generals that continue the will of Lord Mairak, who perished on the Night of the Crimson Sky, 15 of your years ago.”

“‘Crimson Sky’? ‘15 years ago’?”, Hibiki pondered, having a flashback to the last time she had seen her mother.

* * *

“ _Don’t worry, Hibiki-chan. Mother will make sure the red skies go away. You need to do your best to be brave. I’ll be back soon.” The young Hibiki then saw her mother go out the door, never to be seen again._

* * *

Back in the present, Takuto pointed at Gelashi, Oomikaoo and VolKraken. “Like I said, your rampage will end here, at our hands.” He pulled out the JuuKeitai and his ID card, with the others doing likewise. “Everyone, let’s go.”

“Kijuu Henge!” A Soul Chip appeared to each of them, which they all took and inserted into their JuuKeitai.

“ **Shishi! Kame! Taka! Kajiki! Jaguar! Doubutsu Gashin!** (Animal Fusion)” As the JuuKeitai rang out, the powered suits were generated onto the 5, with Takuto gaining a red suit, Kamijo gaining a black suit, Hibiki a pink suit, Mio a blue suit and Wataru a yellow suit. They then gained animal-themed details on their suits. Red gained lion details, Black received turtle details, with a honeycomb pattern on his arms, Pink had her suit altered with hawk-esque elements, Blue received a blade-shape on her helmet, similar to a swordfish and Yellow had gained the features of a jaguar on his helmet. The 5 all shared a stylised “Q” with teeth engraved on it. The 5 then stepped forward in order, giving their names and doing a pose.

“QidenRed!”

“QidenBlack!”

“QidenPink!”

“QidenBlue!”

“QidenYellow!”

Then the 5 said in unison “Kijuu Sentai Qidenger!”

As the three invaders looked on in shock, a single word came out of Oomikaoo’s mouth. “Qidenger.”

Gelashi on the other hand was not deterred. “VolKraken, _attack_!”

The three villains charged into battle, engaging the newly formed Qidengers. Takuto/QidenRed went straight for VolKraken hitting it with a series of punches that caused the beast to stagger backwards. “If only I had a weapon.”, he stated. As if on cue, a sword appeared in his hand.

**Kijuu Caliber.**

“Nice.”, Takuto said as he began swinging his new weapon at VolKraken, severing part of its arm.

Elsewhere, Kamijo/QidenBlack and Mio/QidenBlue were fighting with Oomikaoo. “So, you seem to be higher up in the organisation then your mindless helper.”, Black commented, summoning up his weapon.

**Kijuu Caliber.**

Blue had also deployed hers, delivering several slashes to Oomikaoo. “Tell your leaders that we”re not going to let you do what you want. And that’s a message from the Qidenger.”

Hibiki/QidenPink and Wataru/QidenYellow had engaged Gelashi. “You cursed humans.”, the lion-woman growled. “You won’t succeed in saving your dimension.”

“Don’t be too sure.”, Yellow said in response. “You shouldn’t underestimate the future of scientific process.” He tried to mimic the pose to summon the Kijuu Caliber, as did Pink.

But instead, a gun each appeared in their hands. “ **Kijuu Magnum**.”

“Well, never look a gift horse in the mouth, to borrow a phrase.”, Pink commented as she pointed her new weapon at the enemy, firing and knocking Gelashi back. Then a slot opened in the back of the weapon. “What's this for?”

“I assume it’s something that uses these.”, Yellow answered as he pulled out his Soul Chip, inserting it into his Kijuu Magnum. Hibiki took out her own and followed his lead

**Qiden Charge! Jaguar!/Taka!**

“Qiden _Powered Shot_!” Wataru and Hibiki stated, firing their weapons at Gelashi, knocking her back in an explosion.

“You won this round, Qidenger.”, Gelashi said angrily. “But next time will be different.” She then disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Across the field, Kamijo and Mio had got the better of Oomikaoo and opened and inserted their Soul Chip into the slot on their Kijuu Caliber, preparing their own attack. “Qiden _Powered Slash_!”

**Qiden Charge! Kame!/Kajiki!**

The two blades hit Oomikaoo, with him emerging from the blast covered in smoke. He growled at the two before teleporting out.

Takuto managed to knock VolKraken into some barrels, before pulling out a Kijuu Magnum and firing shots at the creature with it. “Let’s see if these can be used together.”, he said, pressing the two weapons together, causing the sword to rest on the top barrel of the gun, forming a rifle

 **Kijuu Buster**. Takuto inserted his Soul Chip into the weapon. **Qiden Full Charge!**

“Qiden _Super Final_!”, Takuto stated as he fired the weapon at VolKraken, causing a larger burst of energy to come forth.

Spark! The energy hit VolKraken, causing him to explode into pieces.

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, the two commanders came stumbling in. “I’m sorry, Lady Moboroshina.”, Gelashi wheezed. “These humans were tougher than we expected.”

“Qidenger.”, Oomikaoo managed to say.

Moboroshina was shocked. “Oomikaoo, you can speak once more?”

“That’s what you focus on, Moboroshina?”, Calam asked. “How can the Qidengers have thwarted us. Lord Mairak killed them all himself during the Night of the Crimson Sky. I saw it.”

“You fool.”, Moboroshina scowled at him. “Clearly this is a new group that have inherited the same power.” She then turned to Megaro. “Can you use the machine now?”

“Of course I can, Lady Moboroshina.”, Megaro nodded nervously, before pressing a series of buttons on his keypad. A red beam of energy came out of the “eye” of the fortress and headed towards the battlefield.

* * *

“ _Good job_ , everyone.”, Takuto said to the others as they were celebrating. “We managed to defeat them for now.”

As if on cue, the red beam hit the smouldering remains of VolKraken, causing a giant copy to emerge from the remains. “No way.”, Mio said with shock. “How are we meant to fight this thing now?”

Takuto then received a call on his JuuKeitai from the old man. “You can use the JuuKeitai to summon a great beast to fight against giant creatures like this. Simply enter the code ‘5466’ in your JuuKeitai after selecting the animal icon.”

“ _Thank you_ , Oji-san.”, Takuto said into the phone, before pressing the button and inserting the code.

 **Summon Kijuu Lion**. A large robot, resembling a lion appeared and lunged at VolKraken, knocking the beast back. Takuto then leapt up into the robot, taking control of it.

“Kijuu Lion, Bujin Henkei!” At Takuto’s command, the lion’s head folded forward, with the neck section breaking in half and becoming a set of shoulders, with the front legs transforming into arms, the feet becoming clawed hands. The hind legs folded upwards, becoming a pair of regular legs. Finally, a humanoid head emerged from the area where the lion head had been. “Now, let’s go.” Kijuu Lion engaged in hand to hand with VolKraken, slashing at the creature with its claws and blocking the hits aimed at itself. “Tsume no Mai!”(dance of the claws) The robot began spinning at high speed, hitting VolKraken with its claws several times, causing it to fall down and explode.

The 4 on the ground celebrated this. “Nice one, Hajime-san.”, Kamijo called out.

* * *

Back in the Vordos Fortress, Moboroshina entered her private room, approaching a mirror. “Kagami-san, I request your presence, now.”

The mirror covered her reflection in smoke, from which a different face, with glowing red eyes manifested. “I’m aware of your problems, Moboroshina.”, the being known as Kagami said. “I sensed that he is active again. Presumably a new generation of Qidengers has awakened.”

“Indeed, Kagami-san.”, Moboroshina nodded. “But there’s more. Oomikaoo has recovered his ability to speak. The first stage of our agreement has been completed.”

The phantom image of Kagami nodded. “Continue to fulfil my task for you and I will complete the process. That is our deal.”

* * *

Back at the old man’s mansion, the inhabitant switched off a new report featuring one Kousuke Ryuota, as the 5 new Qidengers came in. “Oji-san, good news. We managed to defeat that thing.”, Takuto called out.

The old man laughed at this. “You speak as if it were a great victory.” His tone suddenly turned angry. “You fool. You still have much to learn, young Takuto.”

* * *

**_In order to ensure Hajime Takuto changes, the old man assigns him to spend time with Shinohara Wataru. Then the pair meet Voldos’ first Bukikai (weapon machine) Gatleander, which releases a terrible poison into the city. Wataru and Takuto have to ensure the populace lives through the crisis. Next time: Inspiration! The Genius Battle. Look forward to it._ **


	2. Inspiration! The Genius Battle!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takuto and Wataru must work to face a robot opponent that carries a deadly poison.

_**Last time, 5 young warriors gathered to form a new team of heroes, Kijuu Sentai Qidenger. During their first battle, the Qidengers took out Voldos’ attack monster, VolKraken. However upon their return to the mansion where they have set up shop, the old man who assembled them calls out Takuto.** _

* * *

After a while, the 5 newly-ordained Qidengers sat down with the old man, as an old woman came in carrying tea for them. “I assume this will do, sir.”, the old lady said to her master.

“Indeed. Thank you Rin.”, the old man nodded, hurrying her out.

Takuto then spoke up, for the first time in a while . “Well now, Oji-san. What did you mean when you said I still had much to learn? I took down that monster easily enough on my own.”

“‘On my own’, that’s the problem you face, _Mr. Hajime_.”, the old man stated. “The other Qidengers all worked together to take on their opponents. You act on your own too much.”

“Nii-san’s been like that as long as I can remember.”, Mio commented. “Mostly as a response to the number of people our father meets with. I think I can see why that’s a reason now.”

“Indeed.”, Kamijo nodded. “Hajime cottoned on that Otonaru-san’s robberies are team efforts and given that he’s decided to avoid all things that his step-father does, thinking that’ll be what’s right.”

Takuto seemed to get angry at this. “Don’t act like you know me, Kamijo-san.”, he snapped.

“Antipathy aside, _Mr. Kamijo and Miss Otonaru_ are accurate in saying that you have trouble trusting others.”, the old man interjected. “I intend to fix that by pairing you off with two of your teammates, separately. You won’t have passed until you form an understanding of them to the point you fight as one. Your first pairing will be with _Mr. Shinohara_.”

Wataru interrupted the conversation by spitting out the tea he was drinking. “You can’t be serious.”, he said with shock.

The old man merely had a serious look on his face. “I think he’s completely serious, Wataru-san.”, Hibiki said nervously.

* * *

In the Voldos Fortress, Moboroshina was talking with Megaro and Gelashi. Calam was absent. “We need to deal with these Qidengers in addition to the human eradication plan.”, Moboroshina stated. “Do either of you two have anything to offer? I take it by Calam’s absence that he has nothing.”

Megaro began speaking, his vocaliser stuttering as usual. “I… I do have something, Lady Moboroshina. Behold, the weaponiser.” He pulled out a controller. “This… this device will take any organism and make a Bukikai (portmanteau of “Buki” (weapon) and “Kikai” (Machine) from its basic data.”

“So, you can turn Earth’s beings into their own destruction.”, Gelashi noted. “I can already do that. What’s so special about your ‘Bukikai’?”

“I am not lim-lim-lim-lim-” Megaro banged his chest. “-limited to humans. I can use the deadliest organisms on Earth, such as this plant here.” He held up a stem. “I believe humans call it “Oleander” and it can cause poisoning in most organisms that cause their bodies to react negatively.”

Moboroshina smiled. “ _Wonderful_. Megaro, create your Bukikai and unleash it on the Earth.”

“As you wish.” Megaro went over to his machine, inserting the oleander sample into it and pressing the remote’s buttons. After 30 seconds, a robot, sporting flower-like, arm-mounted cannons and a predominantly green colour scheme, emerged from the machine. This was Gatleander.

* * *

In a different part of the fortress, Calam was calling out. “Dimayta! Dimayta, where are you? Dimayta!”

As if on cue, Dimayta appeared. She was a humanoid woman dressed in tan britches, tall boots, a black coat over a white vest, canary shirt and stock tie, a hunting helmet and a pair of black gloves. She also held a rifle over her shoulder. “Calm yourself, Calam. I’ve just returned with more Vorjuu, as you requested. I assume the VolKraken I brought you did well.”

Calam shook his head. “It got blown to pieces by a group known as the Qidenger. They’re a successor to the group that defeated Lord Mairak in our last invasion.”

Dimayta put her hand on her master’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Master Calam. When I’m through with the taming, this new set of Vorjuu will be especially vicious. Those Qidengers won’t known what hit them.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Wataru returned to his apartment block, only to be shocked by the sight of Takuto standing there. “What’re you doing here?”, he barked.

“We’re supposed to develop a strong bond, right?”, Takuto answered. “So I thought that if we spend as much time together as possible, we can both get this over with quickly.”

Wataru sighed in resignation. “Well, I do have a guest bed you can sleep on. Might as well use that.” He opened the door and ushered his unexpected guest in.

Takuto looked around the room and looked around. Among the features, he saw a photo of a woman in a frame, signed “恵”. “Who’s this, Wataru-san? Your mother?”, he asked.

“No, she’s my teacher from the Science Academia.”, Wataru said in response. “She gave me that picture so I could have something to remember her by while I’m on my break. She’s a great woman and a great scientist. I want to be like her.”

“That’s fascinating.”, Takuto said, as he stopped, feeling something on the wind. “Voldos.”, henstated. “They’ve sent another warrior to fight.”

“I guess duty calls.”, Wataru said as he put his pillow down. “Lead the way. You know where they are.”

* * *

In the city centre, Gatleander had touched down, accompanied by Megaro and a squadron of Vordorons. “Now, we need to get to work quickly.”, Megaro stuttered. “Those Qidenger guys could be here any minute.”

“How about this minute?” Kamijo, Mio and Hibiki leapt in, kicking the robot back. “So, Vordos sent a robot to face us this time.”, the former noted. “They must be desperate to conquer Earth.”

“Don’t knock us machines.”, Megaro snarled. “Gatleander, show them your full power.” The robot growled, releasing spores into the air. “Like the plant he was created from, Gatleander contains a poison, which his weapon parts can release in the form of spores.

 **Dobutsu Gashin!** The now-transformed QidenBlack, QidenBlue and QidenPink charged into battle, engaging the Bukikai. Gatleander fired on the three, who dodged out of the way. Black and Blue hit him with their Kijuu Calibers while Pink fired on the robot with her Kijuu Magnum.

“Come on.”, Megaro urged. “You can do it, Gatleander. I know you can.” He was then shot back by some newcomers. Namely, QidenRed and QidenYellow, both wielding their Kijuu Magnums. “Right, I forgot about you two.”

“Sorry for keeping you waiting.”, Takuto said to the others. We had to navigate a route here that was quick.”

“Well it’s good that you’re here now.”, Pink assured them. “Now we can take this creep down together.” But before they could do anything else, Pink, Blue and Black all collapsed in pain. “What’s happening?”

Megaro laughed. “You all ingested Gatleander’s poison, and it’s begun to affect you. Your friends might be safe for now, but the poison is spreading through your air.”

“ _What_?”, Wataru exclaimed. Gatleander then fired his cannons at the Rangers, shooting them back. “You cur.”

“I’ll leave you to wallow in the fact you can’t save anyone.”, Megaro laughed as he and Gatleander teleported out. Everyone infected reverted back to normal, as Takuto and Wataru could only look at them, helpless.

* * *

“ _In breaking news, disaster has struck the city as Tokyo’s residents find themselves being struck down by an invisible enemy. Doctors are overwhelmed by the mass numbers of patients that even now are increasing dramatically. Scientists have worked out that the infection is airborne and are advising people to stay in their homes, only go out if you have some form of face-covering. As of right now, a cause has yet to be determined.”_

In their fortress, the members of Voldos observed this as it happened, laughing at the humans’ suffering. “We’ll have eliminated the humans in that city within a day.”, Megaro reported. I merely need to send out Gatleander to other areas of Earth in order to release his spores there.”

“I must say, I’m impressed you’ve achieved this much.”, Gelashi said to her comrade. “I assume you managed to get rid of those cute little Qidengers.”

Megaro began sweating, or rather, doing the motions of sweating. “Unfortunately, Red and Yellow didn’t show up ‘til after I released the spores. And they were in their powered suits, so I don’t know if they were affected or not.”

“They won’t have been.”, Moboroshina stated. “The old man’s _powered suits_ are designed to filter out anything that could prohibit the wearer’s breathing ability. Those two are still an active threat.”

As Megaro began to have a breakdown, Calam merely laughed. “This just proves you should never send a robot to do a real warrior’s job. Put me in command of that Gatleander and I’ll make sure those Qiden punks won’t be a problem anymore.”

“You are the only one with no field experience so far.”, Moboroshina said in response, before nodding. “Very well, agree. You will take Gatleander and attempt to remove the last of the Qidengers from the equation.”

“I won’t let you down, Lady Moboroshina.”

* * *

At the old man’s mansion, Takuto, Rin and the old man, all wearing protective coverings over their noses and mouths, were tending to the three downed Qidengers. “How does it look, Oji-san?”, Takuto asked.

“Not good.”, was the old man’s answer. “They took a direct dosage of the same poison afflicting everyone else who was affected.”

“We need to identify what compounds might have been in the poison.”, Rin noted. “Then we might be able to heal these kids.”

“Wataru might be able to come up with a solution like that.”, Takuto suggested. “Come to think of it, where is Wataru? Seems like he should be here.”

* * *

In his apartment, Wataru was banging his head against the wall. “Why can’t I come up with something?”, he bemoaned. “This should be easy.” He then turned to the signed picture on his table. “Apologies, Misaki-Sensei. I’ve failed as your student and as your successor.”

“Don’t give up just yet.” Wataru turned around to see Takuto coming in. “We just need to find the cure for the compounds that make up the poison.”

“And how do you suppose I do that?”, Wataru cried, freaking out. “I’m not exactly equipped to take air samples.”

“You don’t need to.”, Takuto said in response. “That robot was based on an oleander flower, right? So it stands to reason that the poison he released was also based on the one in that flower.”

“ _You’re right_.”, Wataru realised. “I just need to find the cure for that and then I can get to work on dealing with this infection.” He went over to his computer and looked up information on the Nerium genus of plants. “Got it. The poison is based on digoxin, which can be cured using membranes from chemically treated sheep.” He then continued typing. “There’s a sheep farm in Shiga Prefecture. It’s based on some kids programme, but it may be our best bet.”

“Then what’re we waiting for?”, Takuto asked. “Let’s go.”

* * *

At the mansion, Rin came in with some magnesium. “I came across some medical books saying this was the best temporary treatment for this type of problem. It should help the three of you-” she stopped to see that only Kamijo and Hibiki were lying there, with Mio gone “-make a recovery.” She dropped her tray.

* * *

At the Shiga Farm Garden, Wataru and Takuto parked up and approached the building. “We’ve got to see if they’ll help us.”, Wataru stated. “Before it’s too late.”

“Oh, it’s too late all right.” The two were blown backwards by the entrance of Calam, accompanied by Gatleander and a group of Vordorons. “You two are the last of the Qidengers. Once we eliminate you two, the Earth will be ours.”

“Not… on our… watch.” Everyone turned to see a weakened Mio staggering towards the scene. “I… won’t go down until the Voldos go down… even if I put myself at risk.”

Takuto was worried. “Nee-chan, you should be resting.”, he urged.

Wataru held him back. “I think we could use all the help we need at this point.”, he said. “Even if said help isn’t at 100 percent.”

Takuto hesitated, before nodding. “Alright, let’s go.” Everyone pulled out their Soul Chips and inserted them into their JuuKeitais.

**Shishi! Kajiki! Jaguar!**

“Kijuu Henge!” The three pressed the buttons on their phones, generating their powered suits.

**Doubutsu Gashin!**

“Kijuu Sentai Qidenger!”

Calam was unimpressed. “Get them.”

The three Qidengers jumped into battle with the Voldos soldiers, with Blue and Yellow making short work of the Vordorons before moving onto Gatleander, who fired shots at them which they dodged, before proceeding to deliver attacks to it with their weapons.

Red on the other hand was fighting with Calam. “I am the strongest warrior in all of Voldos.”, the enemy general proclaimed. “No£one in this pitiful dimension can match me in a sword fight.”

“That may be.”, Red said as he managed to knock his opponent back with a sword slash. “Let’s see how you do in a gunfight.” He pulled out his Kijuu Magnum and fired at his opponent, knocking him back. He then ran in to deliver another slash to his opponent, who was knocked backwards.

“Heh. You’re pretty good.”, Calam noted. “I’m going to be keeping an eye on you.” He then teleported out. Red then turned his attention to Gatleander, jumping out of the way of his shots and then delivering a slash to his chest. “Guys, let’s finish this.”

Blue and Yellow nodded. Red assembled his Kijuu Buster, Blue took out her Kijuu Caliber and Yellow deployed his Kijuu Magnum. All then inserted their Soul Chips into their weapons. “Qiden _Triple Super Final!”_

 **Qiden (Full) Charge**! Blue ran forward and delivered a slash to the enemy, before Yellow fired a series of shots. Finally Red jumped forward and unleashed his weapon’s energy, destroying Gatleander.

“ _Nice job_.”, Yellow noted. Then the beam saw the same beam of energy hit Gatleander’s remains, restoring him as a giant robot. “You’d better take care of this one, Takuto.”

“Okay.”, Red said, taking out his JuuKeitai and dialling.

 **Summon Kijuu Lion**. The robotic lion appeared, transforming into it’s warrior mode and engaging the enemy robot in battle, under Takuto’s control. However, the giant Gatleander was more than a match for the robot, overpowering it handily and shooting it down.

“Nii-san’s in danger.”, Blue said with worry. “We need to help him.”

Yellow nodded. “I know, but how?”

Just then, the old man called in. “You two have your own Kijuu to pilot.”, he said. “Summon them the same way Takuto summons his.”

“Thank you.”, Yellow responded, before leading Blue through the motions.

 **Summon Kijuuki, Kijuuguar**. Two robots, a blue-coloured Swordfish, flying through the air and a yellow jaguar, which ran forward at high speed. Mio and Wataru leapt into their respective robots, preparing to attack the enemy.

“ _Swordfish Missile_ , launch!” Blue fired her Kijuu’s weapon’s, knocking Gatleander back before he could deliver the finishing blow.

Then Yellow launched his attack. “ _Jaguar Impact!_ ” His Kijuu tan forward with speed so great that it managed to leave a notable dent in the Bukikai.

“Thanks for the help.”, Red radioed to the others. “Let’s see if we can combine our powers. We’ve got one function on the JuuKeitai unused, that might be meant to be used for that.”

“Let’s try it.”, Yellow responded. “After all, when it comes to scientific process, limits are meant to be tested.”

“Let’s do it.”, Mio said, joining the other two in pressing the third button. They then pressed their individual buttons for Kijuu summoning, before pressing the confirmation button.

**Lion! Swordfish! Jaguar! Kendo Formation!**

The Lion robot retracted it’s right arm and it’s left leg. The jaguar ran in to take the place of the leg, folding its hind body upwards, while the Swordfish attached to where the arm was, deploying a hand from the mouth. Finally, the back of the robot opened, folding out a helmet shaped like that of a gladiator, which attached onto the head. “KijuuOh Ken, linkup complete.”

The newly formed robot engaged Gatleander, cutting off his flower cannons, before kicking him backwards. “Time to finish this.”, Takuto said, as he lead the others in inserting their Soul Chips into the robot, before depositing them by cranking a handle. “KijuuOh, Straight Crash!” The robot brought its sword down on the enemy once more, causing him to collapse to the ground in a fiery inferno.

As the three began to celebrate, Mio collapsed again. “We need to get her that cure.”, Wataru realised.

* * *

“ _In breaking news, the cure for the airborne poison has been discovered in Shiga Prefecture by one Shinohara Wataru, a student of the highly privileged Science Academia. Shinohara-san discovered that the poison was derived from the Nerium plant, thus a cure could be derived from chemically treated sheep. This comes shortly after a giant robot battle at the Sheep Farm in Shiga Prefecture. A fight that one Kyosuke Ryuota has some strong words concerning.”_

Moboroshina watched as the image changed to a middle-aged man in a suit, accompanied by a a group of people in similar clothes. “ _This is the latest in a series of giant attacks that our country has suffered over the years. We’ve suffered for too long under these types of incursions and have millions in property damage as the only thing to show for it.”_

Moboroshina stopped paying attention to the man, instead turning to the presence of Kagami in her mirror. “Another of our operations has been thwarted. But Gatleander managed to get captures of the Qidengers’ physical likenesses. That could be useful.”

“Indeed.”, Kagami stated. “Perhaps you should go after one of them in your next scheme.”

“It will be done.”, Moboroshina said as she turned back to the image of Kyosuke. “And perhaps it could be useful to have allies in the human dimension.”

“… _which is why it’s time to say ‘we don’t want anymore of these so called heroes bringing nothing but destruction. We need to do something about it.”_

* * *

**_Next time, Takuto continues his task of bonding with the other Qidengers, specifically Komaki Hibiki. But then one of Hibiki’s charges is turned into a new monster by Gelashi, can the Qidengers defeat the Weather Witch? Look forward to the next instalment, ‘Tempest! A Young Girl’s Anger!’_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New villainess Dimayta is a homage to Keris from Ohranger, only based on a hunter rather than an animal tamer. She wasn’t part of my plan for the series to begin with, but after rewatching those episodes, I felt such a character could work. She’ll be a more regular character than Dimayta though.
> 
> The idea behind the Bukikai is that they get less threatening basis with every one created, to the point that the last one to appear will be based on a harmless organism. Just in case any submissions want to include a new robot monster.


	3. Tempest! A Young Girl’s Anger.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takuto must form a bond with Hibiki for his next task. But things become complicated when one of her students is turned into a monster.

Within the Voldos Fortress, Gelashi was observing a machine. The machine created something, which was placed inside a plastic tub, with a lid covering the top of it. “It’s done.”, she stated ecstatic at the prospect of her latest plan.

“And what would that be?”, Calam, accompanied by Dimayta and Megaro, entered the room. “Don’t tell me you’re creating more of your secret weapon.”, said the former of the three.

“Oh don’t be so shocked.”, was Gelashi’s reply. “You boys have had your fun, so it’s only fair that I get the same opportunity. And I’m going to need my demonic gelato to achieve that goal.”

Dimayta was skeptical. “Don’t you need to find someone in order for that option to be open?”, she asked.

“Oh don’t worry.”, Gelashi snapped her fingers, transforming into a youthful woman, dressed in a uniform. “I’ll find one soon enough.”

* * *

Down in Tokyo, Komaki Hibiki was returning to her apartment. When she reached the door, she saw Hajime Takuto standing there. “Hajime-san, What’re you doing here?”, she said with shock.

“My time with Wataru-kun has been served.”, was Takuto’s answer. “And with him on his way to get an award for curing that disease, Oji-san decided to have me conclude my task with you.”

Hibiki was intrigued about this. “What about Kamijo-san?”, she asked.

Takuto shook his head. “Even Oji-san knows that getting him and I together is a lost cause.”, he said. So he’s content to let us to get together and call it a successful job.”

Hibiki sighed. “Well, if you’re going to be hanging around, I do need an assistant for my teaching job. It doesn’t require much knowledge, you just have to go around to each of the kids and help with whatever problems they have to the best of your abilities.”

Takuto gave her a thumbs up. “I think I can do that.”

* * *

In the old man’s mansion, he and Kamijo were watching Kyosuke Ryuota on the evening news. “Not another one of his speeches.”, the latter said with anger. “How does he have so much sway with his rhetoric?”

“Sadly, too many people buy into the type of speeches people like him make.”, was the old man’s response. “All we can do is try and disprove his points through our actions. And talking of actions, I trust you’ll watch over Takuto and Hibiki during their time together.”

Kamijo nodded. “I won’t let you down, sir.”

* * *

The next day, Hibiki led Takuto to her workplace, a small elementary school in the Juuban District. “Like I might’ve mentioned, I had to grow up in a children’s home after my mother disappeared. It wasn’t the most pleasant experience, to say the least. So I became a teacher so that I could help children have the relatively problem-free childhood I myself lacked.”

“You’re doing something noble.”, Takuto nodded. He then looked across the playground to see a little girl being pushed around (literally) by a group of boys. “Alright! Break it up!”, he called out as he ran forward to stop the scuffle. “Are you okay?”, he asked the little girl.

“Hey, old man.”, one of the boys said with annoyance. “Don’t but in on our game.”

“It didn’t look like a game to me.”, Takuto responded. “You looked like you were picking on this girl here.”

“Oh, Mika-chan’s been the victim in our games for a while now.”, another of the kids said as a reply. “None of the other teachers have interfered.”

“Alright, break this up!”, Hibiki interjected. “All of you, get to class now. Or I’ll have the principal call your parents.”

“Sorry, Sensei.”, the boys all dropped their smug behaviour, bowing and running off.

Hibiki then comforted the girl Mika. “Mika-chan, are you okay?”

“Go away.”, the girl named Mika cried, pushing her teacher’s arms off. She then ran away.

“Mika-chan!”, Hibiki called after the girl. But she didn’t stop, instead continuing to run away. “Not again.”

“This happens often?”, Takuto asked.

“About once a week.”, was Hibiki’s answer. “She’ll return soon. For now, you and I have a class to get to.”

* * *

In the city, Mika stopped running. She sat down on a fence, crying once more. “Stupid boys. Stupid teachers. I hate everything.”, she shrieked. “I wish I could tear it all down.”

At that moment, an ice cream van pulled up right next to the little girl. A woman in a uniform came out and sat down next to the little girl. “What’s the matter, darling? Are you feeling down?”

“Go away.”, Mika snapped. “I just want to be left alone, and not be bothered by anyone.”

“Now now, I’ve got something for you.” As she said this, the lady pulled out an ice cream cup and offered it to Mika. “Here, free of charge.”

Mika took the cup and decided to eat it, so she could at least be courteous to this nice lady. As she began to swallow her frozen treat, Mila began to convulse, collapsing on the ground. Her skin turned green, her body changing into a more adult figure, with her clothes becoming a black minidress decorated with embroidered pictures of weather, with fishnets added to the look. She now had long claws for fingernails and her face had become more wrinkled, with a pointy chin and nose. To complete her new look, the girl had a small hat on her hair, which was now pointed outward like lightning. “Time to put all of those meanies down for good.”, the newly created monster declared. “They’ll be rewarded appropriately for what they did to me.”

“Glad to hear it.” With her handiwork having born fruits, Gelashi transformed back into her monstrous appearance. “Now then, my cute little Kanjin, Weather Witch (name translated from Japanese). Destroy all of your tormentors through your rage.”

“Yes, Mistress.”, Weather Witch nodded, before proceeding to release waves of energy, which generated dark clouds overhead.

* * *

At her high school, Mio saw the clouds forming overhead. That’s odd, she thought. The weather should be clear today. She had herself sent out of class on purpose and took out her JuuKeitai, calling Wataru and Kamijo. “Guys, I think there’s something going on with the weather, that might be the work of Voldos. Let’s meet up to discuss it.”

Takuto and Hibiki also saw the clouds in the middle of their lesson, but had to ignore it for the time being.

* * *

In the park, the three available Qidengers gathered to encounter Weather Witch, who was now making it rain. “So this is Voldos’ latest plan, eh?”, Blue said with some sarcasm. “Bad weather.”

Yellow nodded. “Certainly doesn’t seem as threatening as their previous plans.”

“I’ll show you how threatening I am.”, the monster shouted as she moved her hand towards the three, directing lightning to hit them. Blue and Yellow managed to block the bolt with their weapons, while Black ran forward and began hitting her with his Kijuu Slasher.

After he’d knocked her back a few feet, and a shot from Yellow, Black inserted his Soul Chip into his Slasher. **Qiden Charge! Kame!**

“Qiden _Powered Slash_!” Black hit Weather Witch with his powered up weapon, causing her to fall down and explode. “Well, that was easy.”

Takuto and Hibiki came running in short order. “You seem to have taken care of it.”, the former noted. “But if that’s the case, then why haven’t the skies cleared?”

Hibiki then took notice of someone emerging from the smoke. “Mika-chan!”, she called out. “Are you okay?”

“Get back!”, Mika snapped. She then transformed back into Weather Witch. “I still have to destroy them all.”

The 5 were shocked at this. “The Voldos monster… is a little girl?”, Blue asked.

It was then that Gelashi made her presence known. “Not just any little girl.”, she stated. “My cute little Kanjin is born from the negative emotions of Tenki Mika. As long as she feels those emotions, you’re unable to restore her to normal. It’s not all bad, I went through the same process and look at me.”

“‘Negative… emotions’?”, Yellow began thinking on the enemy general’s words. “Has this girl had any experiences that could make her feel sad or angry?”, he asked Hibiki, having noticed her recognition of this girl.

“Of course, her bullying.”, Hibiki realised. “Mika-chan, I’m sorry. I should’ve done something about this earlier.”

“It’s too late!”, Weather Witch declared. “I’m going to destroy everything that made me angry.” She then generated a cold wind to try and freeze the Pink warrior. However, Wataru and Mio pushed her out of the way, causing both of them to be flash-frozen.

“Let’s go, Kanjin-chan.”, Gelashi said, escorting her creation away with her.

* * *

In the Voldos Fortress, the others watched Gelashi’s progress. “Wonderful.”, Megaro declared. “Gelashi has managed to trap those Qidengers in a stalemate.”

“Either they let the girl go free and allow countless innocents to die as a result of her vendetta, or they fruitlessly try and kill her again and again.”, Dimayta added. “Quite the stalemate indeed.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure.” Everyone turned to the speaker, the Queen’s huntsman Oomikaoo. “Human emotions can easily be changed. In this case, all the Qidengers need to do is calm her down.”

Calam patted his ally on the back. “You’re saying a lot of good points.” Then he had a realisation. “Wait, since when do you talk?”

“I’ve been learning.”, was the only thing the wolf-man said as he turned and walked off. He was hit by visions, of a human woman being kind to him, but he shrugged it off.

* * *

On the old man’s house, Wataru and Mio were resting in beds. “They were in really bad shape.”, the elderly housekeeper Rin noted. “What were they doing, playing around in cold water?”

“We ran into someone.”, was all Kamijo had to say. “Someone with a lot of pent up anger.”

“It’s my fault.”, Hibiki lamented. “I should’ve looked more into Mika’s case, so I could provide better help.”

“Which is what I’ve been doing.”, Takuto said, walking into the room with a file. “From what I can tell, Tenki Mika lost her parents in a car crash at 5 months old. She wasn’t claimed by any relatives, so she grew up in a children’s home. Apparently, those boys like to pick on her solely because they think growing up without parents makes her a freak.”

“That’s horrible.”, Kamijo stated.

“I mean, they are young kids who don’t know much better.”, Hibiki offered, before shaking her head. “No, that doesn’t excuse what happened to Mika-chan. Those boys need to know better.”

“They will.”, Takuto assured her. “We just need to show them the better way. And I know how.”

* * *

At the school, the same boys who had been bullying Mika earlier were walking home. “Hey, guys.” They looked up to see the figure of Weather Witch. “I believe I have some business with you.”

“What the heck are you, you freak?”, one of the boys barked.

“That’s all I am to you, ‘a freak’.”, Weather Witch snarled. “Well I’m about to show you how big of a freak I am.” She then waved her arm, causing a gust of strong wind to blow up and almost sweep the boys off their feet.

From the side, Gelashi was witness to all of this. “Yes, my servant. Unleash your rage energy on those who wronged you. Let it fester and boil until it peaks.”, she commented.

Before Weather Witch could fully blow the boys away, Takuto and Kamijo came running in, knocking the boys out of the way. “You’re getting in the way?”, Weatehr Witch said incredulously. “Then you’ll be punished along with them.”

“That’s enough, Mika-chan.”, Hibiki called out as she ran in front of the Kanjin. “I understand that you were hurt by these boy’s words, but hurting them in turn doesn’t make you better than them.”

Weather Witch growled at this. “Don’t talk like you understand me.”, she hissed. “Sensei doesn’t know what Mika went through.”

“Sensei knows.”, was Hibiki’s response. “I also lost my mother when I was young.”

“Listen to her, Mika-chan.”, Takuto insisted.

“I grew up isolated from everyone else, much like you’ve been doing. I had trouble making friends and getting access to good schools because of my status as an orphan. But I didn’t let it get me down.” Hibiki shook her head. “Instead, I kept pushing myself to do my best. I worked hard and eventually, I became a teacher at this school, so I could help children like you avoid my circumstances.”

Weather Witch stopped her winds, her face reverting to a more human one. “Sensei.”, she whispered. She then reverted back to her little girl self, the darkness floating up into the sky.

Then Gelashi stepped out and plucked the strands of darkness. “No. I’m not about to let the work I put into my little Kanjin go to waste.” She then reshaped the strands of darkness into a duplicate of Weather Witch. “If Mika-chan won’t carry out her revenge, then I’ll do it for her.” She clicked her fingers, summoning a group of Vordorons and Oomikaoo, as the children all ran away. “Get them.”

Takuto, Kamijo and Hibiki pulled out their JuuKeitai, inserted their Soul Chips and pressed the centre button. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Shishi! Kame! Taka! Doubutsu Gashin!**

The three were transformed into their powered suits, engaging the enemies and making quick work of the Vordorons. Takuto then chose to face Gelashi. “You used a little girl’s feelings of isolation as a catalyst to almost make her a killer. You won’t be forgiven!”, he yelled angrily. He inserted his Soul Chip into his Kijuu Magnum and fired at her.

However, Gelashi moved herself out of phase before the shot hit her. “I don’t particularly care what you think about me.”, sh stead, as she once more held a ball of energy in her hand. “And I’ve managed to get some anger energy out of this exercise, which was all I was after. We’ll see each other again, Red-chan.” With that said, she teleported out, leaving behind an angry Red.

Kamijo found himself facing Oomikaoo, whose claws matched his sword strokes perfectly. “You’ve gotten better at this since our last fight, Wolf.”, the man in Black noted. “You were like an animal last time.”

“That’s because I was.”, Oomikaoo said to his foe. “But now I’ve recovered part of my intelligence. And with it, my warrior’s skill.” He knocked Black down with another slash of his claws. “I’ll leave you alive for now. But next time, your skills will truly be tested.” He turned around and teleported away.

Hibiki was facing down the copy of Weather Witch. Despite being blown around by a hurricane, Pink managed to concentrate. “I call upon the power of the Eagle spirit.”, she stated. Wings of energy generated on her back, allowing her to fly the other way from which the wind was blowing and hitting Weather Witch down to the ground. Pink then landed, proceeding to take her opponent down in a fistfight until she was downed.

“Pink, _pass_.”, Red called out as he threw his Kijuu Magnum to her.

“Use this.”, Black threw his Kijuu Caliber to his teammate.

“Thank you.”, Pink nodded as she connected the two weapons into one and inserted her Soul Chip. “Qiden _Super Final!_ ”

**Kijuu Buster! Taka! Qiden Full Charge!**

With one shot of the combined weapon, Weather Witch was destroyed. However, the beam from the Voldos Fortress hit the spot where she died, restoring the Kanjin as a giant. “Everyone, summon your Kijuu.”, Red instructed the others.

“Ok.”, Black and Pink used their Soul Chips to copy what Red was doing.

**Summon, Kijuu Lion! Kijuume! Kijuu Falcon!**

The familiar lion robot, now accompanied by two new robots resembling a tortoise and a falcon. “Kijuu Gattai!”

**Lion! Tortoise! Falcon! Blocker Formation!**

The three robots came together. Kijuu Lion assumed it’s humanoid form, with the left arm and right leg folding inwards. An arm extended outside of the turtle shell and connected into the slot that had been opened for it, with the flippers functioning as claws. The Falcon then folded its wings inwards and its head upward, with the back of the mecha plugging into the leg slot. Finally, a faceplate emerged from the front of the robot, covering the face of the robot. “KijuuOh Tate, linkup complete!”

Weather Witch regarded her foe with anger, firing lightning at it. “Kame _Shield_!”, Black announced, using his arm to block the attack.

“ _Falcon Kick_!”, Pink stated as she pushed her levers forward. KijuuOh ran forward at high speed towards the Kanjin, before delivering a roundhouse kick to it.

“Time to finish this.”, Red said as he led the others in placing their Soul Chips into the slot and depositing it. “KijuuOh, _Shield Break!_ ” The robot detached it’s shield, throwing it into the air and delivering a kick to it, causing it to crash into Weather Witch with enough force to destroy her.

* * *

Some time later, Takuto spoke with Hibiki. “I’ve shared Mika’s story with some of my neighbours. One couple said they’ll look into taking her into their care as soon as it can be arranged.”

“That’s good.”, Hibiki said quietly. “Plus I’ve helped the boys start to realise where they were going wrong with her. It’ll take some time, but they won’t be bullying her or any other orphans again.”

“You’re doing some great work.”, Takuto assured his friend. “I’m sure, wherever she may have ended up, your mother would’ve been proud.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Moboroshina, disguised in a business suit and glasses with a name tag reading “Mori Sayaki’, met with Kyosuke Ryuota. And he wasn’t happy. “Another monster attack that these so called heroes allow to cause damage.”, he fumed. “Someone needs to stop the, before they cause more damage like this.”

“That’s the purpose of our deal, Kyosuke-san.”, Moboroshina said to him. “I’m going to provide you with the way to deal with the Qidengers and show that the people can defend themselves.” She held out a briefcase in front of him. “All you have to do is agree to the terms of our arrangement.”

“I think you know my answer.” Kyosuke said this with a sadistic grin on his face. “We can soon ride this world of the Sentai menace once and for all.”

* * *

_**The old man sends Takuto and Hibiki to locate an expert to help upgrade KijuuOh. At the same time, the other Qidengers must face Queen Moboroshina herself, accompanied by a now-empowered Kyosuke Ryuota. But during the fight, something happens to Kyosuke. Next time: Shocking! The Yellow Ally Search! Look forward to it.** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Kanjin (hybrid of Kanjou (emotion) and kaijin (monster)) are the third and final recurring type of monster in this story. I personally won’t be using them as much as the other two types, but feel free to suggest ideas. 
> 
> Kijuu’Oh Tate is a deliberate contrast to the more offence oriented Kijuu’Oh Ken. There’ll be a more complete combination introduced soon enough. 
> 
> The Weather Witch was inspired by a similar monster from the Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers comic by Marvel.


	4. Shocking! The Yellow Ally Search.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Takuto and Hibiki search for an ally to help the Rangers upgrade KijuuOh, the others must face Moboroshina herself, accompanied by a now-transforming Kyosuke Ryuota.

The 5 Qidengers returned to the mansion from their latest battle. “Mou, that Medusa monster was a tough one.”, Mio bemoaned. “Especially the part where it turned Takuto and Wataru to stone.”

“Technically, it was a gorgon monster.”, Wataru pointed out. “Medusa is simply an example of a gorgon.”

“Whatever, it was really tough.”, Hibiki said in response to this. “Luckily we could still use KijuuOh Tate to fight that thing off. The shield gave us a good way to see it without looking directly at it.”

Wataru seemed annoyed at this. “We’d have been able to deal with it more swiftly if we’d been able to combine all 5 Kijuu in one, then we could’ve deflected the gorgon’s rays and decapitated it.”, he said. “Then we could’ve preserved it’s petrification abilities for further study.”

The old man then chose to make an appearance. “You could never hope to understand VolMedusa’s petrifying effect, _Mr_. Shinohara.”

“Told you it was a Medusa.”, Mio said, nudging Wataru, who simply ignored her.

“But, your point about the Kijuu being unable to combine more than 3 in 1 is well-founded. I have made contact with a woman who can provide us with the necessary components to create the Kanzen (complete) KijuuOh. Takuto and Hibiki will be going to rendezvous with her tomorrow.”

“Only Takuto-san and Hibiki-chan?”, Kamijo asked. “Why not all of us?”

“Perhaps I should catch you up on the news.” The old man brought up a tablet, displaying a video of Kyosuke Ryuota. He hen began playback of the video.

“ _Our county has been in the grip of these so-called protectors for decades now.”, Ryuota said. “The latest in our long line is the Qidengers, who already have damage to the docks, a massive plague killing many and blizzard damage in the middle of the year to their name. Well I say no more.” He pulled out a wristwatch like device and attached it to his wrist. “Thanks to this power I’ve been given, I can fight back against them and become the protector we all deserve. I’ll be at Marunouchi tomorrow at 12:30 PM. Be there Qidengers, or I’ll be forced to take drastic measures.”_ The video ended as applause started in the recording.

The 5 were shocked at this. “That classes as a terrorist threat right?”, Wataru asked. “The whole ‘I’ll be forced to take drastic measures’ line.”

“Not without him admitting he’s committing something illegal.”, Kamijo said to answer him. “For now, drastic measures could mean just about anything.”

The old man slammed his hand down. “What he intends to do is of no concern. We must secure that Genj- that brace he has before any damage can be done with it.”

“Is that brace dangerous, Oji-san?”, Mio asked.

Kamijo shook his head. “I wouldn’t expect an answer from him. It seems that while Takuto-san and Hibiki-chan search for our new ally, the rest of us will have to neutralise Kyosuke, recover that brace and preferably shut him up so he can’t gain any more traction.”

The old man nodded and gave a thumbs up. “Okay, then how will we find this woman helping us?”, Takuto asked.

“The only hint I was given was ‘I am a woman in yellow with a past history with giant robots’.”, the old man said in response. “I assume she can explain the details when you meet her. I sent a picture of you two to her.”

“Well, if we’re going to be spending our time searching for a mysterious woman and actually resisting our greatest critic, then I suggest we all go home.”, Hibiki said, stretching her arms in a “yawn” motion. “We need all the rest we can get.”

* * *

In his office, Kyosuke Ryuota was sitting with his new benefactor, Mouri Sayaki. “Thanks to this new item, this - what did you call it, Mouri-chan?”

“The Genjuu Brace.”, was her answer. “I acquired it from an old man some time ago. I thought you’d suit it perfectly.”

“You thought correctly.”, Kyosuke said. “With this device, I can finally take my revenge against those accursed Sentai heroes.”

Underneath her wig and glasses, Moboroshina was intrigued by this man. “You really hate Super Sentai, don’t you, Kyosuke-san? It’s not just some act you put on to draw in those mindless sycophants. I wonder, what brought about this grudge.”

Kyosuke looked at the woman with curiosity. “I see you’re sharper than you look. As a matter of fact, it goes back over 10 years. Red, tentacled creatures with large fangs for faces were appearing all over the country. My family’s home got destroyed, forcing us into a smaller apartment. We saw a person in Red with a sword and “fire” written on his face during this period. Despite what we had been through, they did nothing to comfort us. They simply left us in our suffering. Then, when I was at work, I saw a large wave of red water flowing through the city, covering almost anything. Then, a giant robot engaged in battle with a giant demon, with parts of the robot breaking off and falling everywhere. My family were in that area, my wife and daughter were taken from me. All because those so called superheroes couldn’t save them. Well now, it’s my turn to get revenge.”

“I admire your drive.”, “Sayaki” said, presenting him with a Soul Chip, bearing the visage of a dragon. “You’ll need this. It’ll allow you to draw the full power out of that device.”

“Thank you.”, Kyosuke said as he took the chip. “This marks the end of the Super Sentai curse.”

* * *

In the Voldos fortress, the three Generals were having a discussion. “I can’t believe VolMedusa failed to defeat those Qidengers. It had them dead to rights as well.”, Calam growled

“Shut up, idiot. We don’t care about your shortcomings.”, Gelashi replied. “What I’m concerned about is where Lady Moboroshina went off to. She seems to have vanished, even from her own chambers.”

“I saw her going into and out of my laboratory earlier today.”, Megaro offered. “When I went back in there, one of the Genjuu Braces we’ve acquired had gone missing. I wonder what she might be up to with it.”

From the side, Oomikaoo watched the three’s discussion, thinking over the words he had overheard. “Genjuu Brace.” He remembered using a brace like device, transforming into something else. Moboroshina was there, but there was something different about her. He hen remembered using a Wolf Soul Chip with his Brace, but then nothing else. “Who am I?”, the Wolf man asked. “How does Moboroshina know me?”

* * *

The next day, Takuto and Hibiki both set off into the city, searching for their target. The two took separate routes, both looking for a woman in something yellow. Despite asking several women if they were expected, neither turned up any results in their search. Takuto then looked to the sky. “Who could this mysterious woman be?”, he thought to himself. “She’s certainly not making this easy for us.”

It was then that Takuto ended up bumping into a middle-aged woman, carrying a bow and arrow. “Sorry about that, young man.”, she said to Takuto. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“It’s okay, I was distracted as well.”, Takuto admitted. He hen got a good look at the woman, noting that her clothes seemed to be white with blue highlights. “Sorry, I thought you might be someone I’m looking for.”

“Well, perhaps I know who that might be.”, the woman responded. “I run an archery class in Tateyama City. Perhaps you’d like to come with me and help set up.”

Takuto seemed confused, but quickly nodded. “Well, if you’re sure you need the help.”

* * *

Over in Marunouchi, the trio of Mio, Kamijo and Wataru walked to the centre of the business district. “He said to meet us here, didn’t he?”, Kamijo said. “And it’s been over 5 minutes since his scheduled time.”

“Maybe he gave up trying to fight us?”, Mio suggested.

“Not at all.” Everyone turned around to see Kyosuke, accompanied by a woman that none of them recognised. “I simply looked around for people who might be the Qidengers, settling on the ones who chose to come near the scene where I announced I’d be waiting for a showdown.” He then eyed the three, looking disappointed. “Only three of you? I thought there were 5 Qidengers.”

“The others are busy.”, Wataru answered him. “Speaking of those who are present, who’s your lady friend? Considering what I’d read about you, I didn’t think you’d have a second love.”

“Your sense of humour is severely lacking, human.”, the woman said, adjusting her glasses. “I assume my followers have told you nothing about me. How disappointing.” She then threw her glasses away and pulled her clothes off, revealing her normal appearance of blonde hair, a black dress and a Phoenix-shaped crown. “I am Moboroshina, Leader of the Dimension Destruction Party Voldos and the future ruler of your planet.”

Kyosuke was shocked to see this. “Mouri-chan is… the ruler of our current invaders?”

“Use the Genjuu Brace.”, Moboroshina said to her unwitting pawn. “Now.”

Kyosuke nervously nodded, inserting the dragon chip into his brace, causing his wrist to crackle with electricity. **Ryu! Error**! But he ignored this pain, instead proceeding to press his button. He was enveloped by energy, transforming into a more scaly appearance, with his hair gone and his eyes having turned fully green. “This power. I can finally destroy all my enemies.”

“Not likely.”, Kamijo said as he led the others in preparing their transformation. “Everyone, let’s change.”

“Kijuu Henge!” **Kame! Kajiki! Jaguar! Doubutsu Gashin!**

After the three had transformed, Moboroshina was unimpressed. “I have a suit like that too.” She took out her own Soul Chip and inserted it into a Genjuu Brace on her wrist. The voice the device produced was much deeper than that of Kyosuke’s Brace and JuuKeitai. **Ho-Ou!** “Genjuu _Change_.”, Moboroshina pressed the button, transforming into a lilac-coloured armoured form.

QidenBlue was shocked by this change. “She can do that too? Since when could the bad guys do that too?”

“It doesn’t matter.”, QidenBlack assured her. “We’re going to defeat her and take it for ourselves.”

However, the ensuing fight didn’t go anything like that. Yellow and Black took on the transforming Kyosuke, while Blue went straight for Moboroshina. “This power.”, Kyosuke growled, knocking his opponents back with brute strength and managing to shrug off their shots and slashes. “I’ve never felt anything like it.” He unleashed a beam of energy from his mouth, knocking the two back.

QidenBlue meanwhile took a swing at Moboroshina with her Kijuu Caliber. “Where did you get that henshin item, grandma?”, she asked as her opponent caught the sword and pushed it back.

“You think of me as a ‘grandma’, hmm?”, Moboroshina taunted. “Well, I’ll show you what a grandma can do, you little brat.” She summoned a large arrow-like weapon onto her wrist. “Ho-Oh _Shot_!” She generated a string of energy, pulling it back to launch laser arrows at her enemy, who was blown back.

Kyosuke had knocked the two other Qidengers down. “It’s time for me to finish you off for-.” Before he could finish that thought, Kyosuke collapsed in pain, clenching his face. “No, it’s too much.” He cried out in a primal scream, before his clothes were torn by his muscles expanding. He then growled loudly, before savagely beginning to smash up the scenery.

“What happened to him?”, Yellow asked.

Black shook his head. “It must be a compatibility issue.”

Moboroshina was concerned with her ally suddenly going wild. “Kyosuke-san, what’s the meaning of this?” Kyosuke, or rather the feral creature that was him, turned toward the Queen and began attacking her, clawing at her face. “I’ll withdraw for now, Qidengers.”, she called out. “But next time, I will not be so lenient.” She teleported out, taking her attacker with her.

“What do we do now?”, Mio asked as the three reverted to normal.

* * *

Elsewhere in the city, Hibiki continued her search for the contact. “Now then, I just need to find someone with an expert knowledge of robots.”, she thought out loud.

“‘Robots’?” Hibiki turned to the source of the voice, a woman, 20-something, with rounded features, dressed in a yellow cardigan and a white blouse. “I know a little on that subject.”

“You do?”, Hibiki said with shock, before having a moment of realisation. “You must be who I came here to meet.” The woman tried to protest, but was stopped. “I’ll take you back with me to help with our problem. What’s your name?”

The other woman immediately stopped trying to protest, instead resigning herself to coming along. “My name is Yoko, Usami Yoko.”

* * *

In the Voldos Fortress, the three Generals were being tossed around by the raving creature Moboroshina had brought back with her. “This thing is tough.”, Gelashi said as he knocked her against the wall. “Where did Lady Moboroshina find it?”

“I’ve never seen a Vorjuu like it.”, Calam said as he tried to keep a hold on the beast. “But I know someone who can keep this beast under control.” He then pulled out a gun and shot it into the wall, startling Megaro. “ _Come on_ , Dimayta.”

Dimayta entered the room. “Ah, I can see why you need me. That thing looks pretty ferocious.”

Megaro was then knocked against the machinery. “Can you make sure it’s brought under control, before it wrecks my laboratory?”, he growled.

“Don’t worry.”, Diamyta said, cracking her whip. “There is nothing I cannot tame.”

* * *

In her chamber, Moboroshina spoke to the mysterious entity in her mirror. “Kagami-san, what happened? Why did Kyosuke attack me?”

“The Soul Chip I made for him was incompatible with him.”, was Kagami’s answer. “Like your friend Oomikaoo, he was transformed into a monster due to the DNA overload, single-mindedly focused on one thing. In his case, his vendetta against the Super Sentai and desire to destroy them. I could halt the process and restore him, like you asked for before.”

Moboroshina though for a few moments, then decided. “No, I think we can use this new creation for our own purposes. And when the Qidengers escalate to giant size, I’ll take the opportunity to bring out a little something to shock those youths.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Takuto had arrived at the training centre with the woman. He was now admiring the various awards and photos decorating her wall. “I can’t believe you were in the Olympics, Ma’am.”

“Eh, don’t you ‘ma’am’ me, _boy_.”, the woman said, light-heartedly hitting him. “My name’s Jun. Yabuki Jun.”

“Right, right. Yabuki-san.”, Takuto nodded. Then he realised something. “You said that the person I was looking for might show up for a class today, but it doesn’t seem like anyone’s coming.”

“I never said they’d show up for a class.”, Jun pointed out. “I just said I might know them. And I needed you to help prepare for for my next course while looking for your friend with the robotics expertise.”

Takuto sighed, hoping that Hibiki was having more luck.

* * *

Back at the mansion, the old man sternly shook his head at Hibiki and her new friend. “I’m afraid this isn’t who I was looking for.”

“I tried to tell her.”, Yoko insisted. “I’m sure I could try and do something else to try and help.”

“I’m sorry.”, Hibiki bowed. “I was so desperate to complete the task I rushed through it and came out with the wrong choice.”

“It’s okay.”, the old man assured her. “I shouldn’t have expected you to be able to find a woman you have no description for perfectly.” He then eyed the wrist of the woman his charge had brought. “Perhaps you can help us after all, _Miss_ -?”

“Usami Yoko.”, Yoko stated. “I’ll do anything. Just name it.”

It was then that Mio, Kamijo and Wataru returned from their battle, nursing their wounds. “Things went south quickly.”, Kamijo reported. “Not only did Kyosuke turn into a monster with that brace, but Voldos’ leader Moboroshina appeared to help him.”

“Moboroshina?”, the old man said with surprise. “I’ve never heard of anyone with that name.”

“Well, she exists and she has access to a device similar to ours.”, Wataru stated. “She called it a Genjuu Brace and she had a Soul Chip based on a phoenix.”

The old man seemed momentarily shocked by this. “No, it can’t be.” But then he composed himself. “If Kyosuke turned into a monster, it’s because he transformed with a Soul Chip that he wasn’t compatible with. He’ll be overwhelmed by the beast’s instincts and become a savage creature, causing massive destruction.”

As if on cue, the news report showed footage of the now feral Kyosuke on the rampage. “ _As you can see, a new monster is attacking the Shinjoku Gyo-en, terrorising the people visiting there. Eyewitnesses from the Qidengers’ recent appearance at Marunouchi have identified it as anti-superhero pundit Kyosuke Ryuota. However, no clear identification can be given at this point.”_

“We need to get out there.”, Kamijo stated. “He’s after us and we need to make sure he doesn’t hurt others.” The others all nodded in agreement.

“I’ll come with you.”, Yoko insisted. “No arguments, I know you think I can’t help you out, but I can.”

The other 4 were confused by this. “Well, if she insists.”, Wataru suggested. “It’s just a matter of getting to the garden from here.”

“Leave that to me.”, the old man insisted. He then performed a sutra, creating a flash that surrounded the five, causing them to disappear, as Rin entered the room. The old man collapsed. “This is really exhausting.”, he noted. “I shouldn’t be doing it again.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Takuto sensed the attack on Shinjoku from afar. “I need to be out there.”, he said, getting up. “Sorry about this, Jun. I’ll be back later.”

“That’s okay, Takuto-chan.”, Jun nodded. “Do what you need to do. I’ll be waiting.” Takuto turned and ran out, as she looked at a photo of herself from over 35 years ago, with 4 others. “He’s a lot like you, Shiro.”

* * *

At the garden, Kamijo, Wataru, Hibiki, Yoko and Mio appeared in the middle of the scene. “How did that just happen?”, Yoko asked.

“I don’t know, Yoko-san.”, was Hibiki’s answer. “For now, we should attend to the problem at hand.” The 4 Qidengers and their friend went over to the rampaging beast. “Hey, Kyosuke. It’s us you want, isn’t it? Why not leave these people alone and go after us?”

“He’s not interested in you anymore.”, the figure of Dimayta appeared from behind him. “Thanks to my training, he’s now another Vorjuu solely focused on destroying everything. Nothing remains of Kyosuke Ryuota.”

Yoko seemed annoyed by the woman. “I assume you’re calling the shots around here.”

“I am Dimayta, Dimension Destruction Party Voldos’ _huntress_.”, was the villainess’s reply. She then cracked her whip. “There is no prey I cannot tame.” She then transformed into a more monstrous appearance, with her clothes becoming armour, her face becoming a devilish rictus grin and her hands becoming large claws.

“You’re not the only one who can transform.”, Yoko said as she held out her left arm, on which was a bracelet like device. She pressed a button on it, causing the brace to whir into life.

**It’s Morphin Time!**

“Let’s Morphin!” Yoko pressed another button, causing a pair of orange goggles to deploy from the brace, before she was surrounded by binary code that transformed into a yellow leather uniform with a rabbit-themed helmet. The goggles in the brace detached and spun around, transforming into a visor for the helmet. “Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters’ Yellow Buster!”

The 4 Qidengers were stunned by Yoko’s transformation. “Tokumei…”, Mio said.

“…Sentai…”, Kamijo continued.

“…Go-Busters’…”, Hibiki added.

“…Yellow Buster?”, Wataru concluded everyone’s confusion.

 **Transport**! Yoko pressed the emblem on her left pec and summoned a sword that vaguely resembled a pair of binoculars. “Let’s go.”, she stated as she charged at Dimayta, the two beginnng to exchange blows.

The 4 Qidengers then turned their attention to the rampaging dragon monster, inserting their Soul Chips and preparing to transform. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Kame! Falcon! Kajiki! Jaguar! Dobutsu Gashin!**

The 4 transformed into their powered suits. “QidenBlack!”

“QidenPink!”

“QidenBlue!”

“QidenYellow!”

“Kijuu Sentai Qidenger!”

The monster growled and began firing its beam at its enemies. The Qidengers ran forward with their weapons, delivering a few hits with them before moving onto the more powerful attacks. “Qiden _Powered Slash_!” Black and Blue both hit with their weapons once more, sending the creature staggering. Pink and Yellow then charged forward to launch their own attack. “Qiden _Powered Shot_!” The creature was once more hit by the Qidengers’ attacks.

“Let’s finish this.”, Black stated as he summoned his Kijuu Magnum to combine with his Caliber.

“Right.”, Yellow Buster nodded, as she transported a red-coloured visor in front of her, attaching it to her brace.

 **Set! Are you ready?** Yellow Buster pressed the button on the side again, causing the two visors to deploy. **Powered Custom! It’s Morphin’ Time!**

“Powered Morphin!” Yellow Buster equipped armour onto herself before pressing a button on the side. It’s Time For Buster! “Rapid Kick!” She leapt up into the air and bounced off a generated wall in the air, before spinning at high speed as she collided with Dimayta, causing an explosion.

The Qidengers then assembled their Kijuu Busters and inserted their Soul Chips. **Kame! Kajiki! Falcon! Jaguar! Qiden Full Charge**!

“Qiden _Hyper Final_!” The 4 fired their weapons at the rampaging creature, surrounding it in flames.

Flames that quickly dissipated, with the creature absorbing them and going through a transformation. It’s back became more hunched, with small spikes on its backside. It’s face became more pointed with its mouth opening to bear fangs. The arms increased in thickness, until the hands had become claws. Finally, the legs had become much more hunched, with all traces of clothing fully removed. Dimayta emerged from her own explosion, looking gleeful at this development. “My newest work has suddenly shown more promise than before.”, she said gleefully. She then cracked her whip once more. “It’s time for you to grow.”

* * *

Taking the hint, Megaro went over to work the machine. “Ask and ye shall receive.”, he commented as he worked the dials. A beam fired at the newly mutated dragon, causing it to grow to gargantuan proportions.

Dimayta looked at the giant creature with glee. “Now, my VolDragon, destroy this pitiful planet.” She cracked her whip. The monster roared as it began to smash buildings.

QidenRed then came running to the scene. “What happened? Did I miss anything?”, he asked. He then looked up to see the newly-christened VolDragon rampaging. “Never mind.”

“Let’s go with KijuuOh Tate.”, Black suggested as they pulled out their JuuKeitai and initiated the procedure.

**Lion! Tortoise! Falcon! Blocker Formation!**

“KijuuOh Tate, combination complete!” The newly formed robot began trying to hit VolDragon with the shield, which knocked it back. KijuuOh then tried launching a kick towards the creature at high speed, only to be hit with fire breathed from its mouth. VolDragon then unleashed its full force breath weapon, knocking Kijuu Falcon and Kijuume off of Kijuu Lion.

“That thing’s tough.”, Pink noted.

“Perhaps we should try something else.”, Black suggested.

On the ground, Yellow and Blue stepped forward. “Took the words right out of my mouth.”, the former said in response. He took out his JuuKeitai and began dialling.

 **Summon Kijuuki! Kijuuguar!** The two robots began attacking VolDragon, buffeting, but not damaging it.

On the ground, Yellow Buster observed the battle in progress. “I should get in there.”, she said, preparing to place a call for RH-03. But before she could say anything, she was knocked back by a whip.

It was Dimayta. “I’ll get you back some day.”, she commented, before teleporting out.

In the air, the two new arrivals had managed to knock VolDragon back several feet using their own firepower. “Alright, we can win this.”, Blue said triumphantly.

As if on cue, a violet-coloured jet, with features reminiscent of a Phoenix, emerged from a portal and fired on the two robots, shooting them out of the air and causing them to crash. “What’s that thing?”, Yellow asked as he recovered from the crash.

“You’re not the only one with a mechanical Titan to fight for you.”, Moboroshina’s voice radioed to the 5. “Say hello to GenPhoenix.”

Red looked on from Kijuu Lion in shock. “‘GenPhoenix’? Like the Kijuu?”

“Exactly.”, was Moboroshina’s reply. “Complete with cross compatibility. Override Gattai!” GenPhoenix proceeded to fly over to KijuuLion, attaching onto the back and forming a helmet over the robot that resembled an iron mask. “Genjuu Lion, combination complete!”

Red tried operating the controls, but to no avail. “I can’t control it anymore.”, he stated.

“But I can.”, Moboroshina said in response. “ _Leo Laser_!” Genjuu Lion fired multiple blasts at the other Kijuu, knocking them down further. “Ho-Oh _Booster_!” The robot flew over to VolDragon, who began clawing at it. Takuto could do nothing to defend himself and the evil Queen would do nothing. What can the Qidengers do to escape from this hopeless situation?

* * *

_In the next episode of Qidenger, our heroes are pushed to the edge in their battle. The Voldos Generals push them to the edge. Suddenly, the help they need appears. “Hōhei Kijuu Gattai!” Join us next time for “Completed! The Full KijuuOh!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this chapter is the start of the reason why there are a bunch of Legends in the characters section. Youko wasn’t added out of any favouritism (in fact, she’s my least favourite character in Go-Busters), but mostly for a misdirect which will pay off next episode.


	5. Completed! The Full KijuuOh!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Narrowly escaping from their near-defeat at the hand of VolDragon, the Qidengers must stoke themselves for a showdown with the enemy commanders. But then, Takuto discovers the truth of the old woman he met before.

_In the last instalment of Kijuu Sentai Qidenger, the Qidenger’s greatest critic Kyosuke Ryuota was transformed by the Voldos advisor Kagami’s power into the Super Vorjuu VolDragon. Qidenger battled the creature, but were overwhelmed by its power. When they faced the beast at giant size, Queen Moboroshina appeared in the Genjuu GenPhoenix, hijacking KijuuLion and forcing it to take every hit from VolDragon. How will our heroes escape from this? Keep going, Qidenger! Fight!_

* * *

On the ground, Yellow Buster recovered to see the Qidengers’ main Robo taking a thrashing from VolDragon. “I’ve got to help them.”, she thought. “But I can’t bring out RH-03 without going back to the Energy Management Centre. And by then, it might be too late.” She then hit upon an idea, pressing her Transpod. **Transport**! She summoned her Sougan Blade and Ichigan Buster, before combining the two into a cannon. **It’s Time for Special Buster!** She aimed at VolDragon and fired her weapon.

The blast hit the creature, causing it to stop hitting its target and recoil from the pain. “What?”, Moboroshina exclaimed as she witnessed the beast recoil.

“This is my chance.”, Yellow noted as he had Kijuuguar claw into the backpack of the combination, damaging GenPhoenix and dislodging it.

The jet reassumed its vehicle mode and flew off into a portal, taking VolDragon with it. “Another time, Qidengers.”, Moboroshina growled as the portal closed.

“That was a close one.”, Red sighed as he relaxed. “Let’s get back to base.”

* * *

As the Qidengers and Yoko returned to the mansion, they found the old man lying unconscious, with Rin tending to him. “What happened to Oji-san?”, Kamijo asked her.

“He exhausted himself transporting the 5 of you to the garden.”, Rin responded. “He’ll be out of it for a while.”

“That’s just great.”, Wataru said with some anger. “We can’t beat our latest enemy, we can’t ask our benefactor for help and worst of all, we still haven’t found that ally we were looking for.”

“Wataru-san.”, Hibiki said as she put her hand on his shoulder. “Calm down, we just need to think this through rationally.”

“The old man said he could use me for something.”, Yoko stated. “But he didn’t say what.”

“Welcome to our world.”, Takuto commented. “We don’t even know his name, yet he expects us to trust him. It’s so frustrating.” He brushed a piece of paper off the table, causing a pair of small items to fall to the floor.

Mio ran over to pick them up. “These kind of look familiar.”, she said as she examined them. “I know, these look like blank Soul Chips.”, she realised.

“‘Blank’?”, Yoko asked as she went over to look, taking one into her hand. “Why would there be blank versions lying around?” As if to answer her question, the Soul Chip began to glow, with the light quickly fading to show a familiar “GB” on the Chip. “No way! It turned into a Soul Chip for Go-Busters?”

“Maybe that’s what Oji-san meant.”, Wataru realised. “Perhaps that’s how we can combine all the Kijuu into one. We simply need to find the person who sent the message and have them transfer that power.”

“Let me look at that paper.”, Hibiki picked up the paper that had been knocked to the floor. “It’s a note, saying that one of the Soul Chips has been given the psychic essence of the one who sent the note in the first place. It should lead us to them.”

As if on cue, the other Soul Chip flew into the air and began spinning, before flying off at high speed. “Wait.”, Takuto called, reaching out his hand, to no avail. “Let’s get after it.”, he stated as he ran off, with everyone else following him.

* * *

“Good luck, everyone.”, the old man mumbled, as his body began to glow.

At the Voldos Fortress, the three Generals had restrained VolDragon in chains. “I wish I’d invented a reverse for the enlarge beam now.”, Megaro blubbered. “It’s hard to keep a beast of this size with our limited space.”

“We won’t need to keep it for long.”, Gelashi pointed out. “The Qidengers are still reeling from the last attack. If we can strike swiftly, we’ll be able to take them out of the equation once and for all. Then VolDragon can destroy Earth for us.”

“B-But will Moboroshina-sama agree to this plan?”, Megaro asked.

Calam slammed his sword down. “Forget Moboroshina.”, he declared. “I didn’t take any oath of loyalty to her. So I’m going to do what I want. Can I get you to join me?”

“Why not.”, was Gelashi’s answer. “We’ll join you, if only for some fun.”

From the side, Oomikaoo observed them. “Damn Calam.”, he muttered.

* * *

In her chambers, Moboroshina was lying on a slab, her hair fading between black and blonde as energy flowed into her from the mirror. “Now now, my dear.”, Kagami’s voice echoed. “I can’t be losing you just because you spend too much time outside. Especially since I still have a use for you.”

* * *

In Tokyo, the Qidengers and Yoko made their way through the streets, still following the blank Soul Chip. “Have you still got a lock on it, Wataru-san?”, Mio asked.

“Definitely.”, was Wataru’s answer. “We just need to stay on it and avoid any major distractions.” As he said this, the party was shot at by the three Demon Generals, accompanied by Dimayta and a group of Vordorons. “I just had to say it, didn’t I?”

“Sorry, to disrupt you while your at your lowest, Qidengers.”, Calam declared. “But now, your end will come by my hand.”

“We don’t have time for this.”, Takuto stated. “I’ll go on chasing the Chip, you battle these guys.” He knocked a few of the Vordorons out of the way, before progressing.

“He’s right.”, Kamijo said as Mio also tried to run off. “We need to stay behind and fight them off, long enough to get what we need.” The others all nodded, as they commenced their transformations.

**Kame! Kajiki! Falcon! Jaguar!/Its Morphin Time!**

“Kijuu Henge!”/“Let’s Morphin!”

 **Doubutsu Gashin**! The 5 of them were transformed into their suits and began fighting the Vordorons. After they had dealt with the Mooks, the three Generals and Dimayta went for opponents of their choice. Calam crossed swords with Black, Yellow and Megaro exchanged shots, Gelashi turned her claws against the female Qidengers and Dimayta began a rematch with Yellow Buster.

“This is our second round, girl.”, Dimayta stated as she threw her whip at her opponent. “And this time, I’ll come out on top.”

In the middle of Black’s fight, Oomikaoo appeared, slashing at both opponents. “You’re a fool, Calam.”, he stated. “You thought you could act against Moboroshina’s will and get out undetected. Well you forgot about me.”

Calam snorted. “I should’ve taken you into consideration.”, he stated. “Well now that you’re here, I might be able to turn this into a plan for Moboroshina-sama’s glory. You can help me defeat QidenBlack.”

“Great, now I’m facing two opponents at once.”, Black commented. “That’s pretty bad odds, for you two.” He pulled his Kijuu Caliber out of the ground and continued running towards his enemies.

* * *

Back with Takuto, he had followed the blank Chip to “Tateyama City?”, he said with shock. “Could it be?”

Sure enough, the scanner led him to the same archery dojo where he had been earlier in the day. Yabuki Jun was standing outside, holding something in between her hands. “I believe this is yours, Takuto-chan.”

Takuto looked at the Chip, which now bore a black circle, with a yellow ring on the inside, with a triangle with a minuet pair of lines dividing a trapezoid off the shape, resulting in the illusion of a ‘B’. “No way. Then you’re…”

“Choudenshi Bioman’s Yellow 4.”, Jun finished the sentence for him. “I’ve been aware of you and your allies’ activities for some time. So I contacted your benefactor and he told me he’d send you or a girl named Hibiki, providing me with a brief description. When I found one of the two, namely you, I decided to see if you had the necessary character to inherit the power I was offering.”

“And given that you’re giving it to me…”, Takuto continued, coming to the obvious conclusion on his own. “But how can I use this to combine the Kijuu?”

“Insert it in your mecha.”, was Jun’s answer. “It’ll update your systems.” She then put her hand on his shoulder. “Now come on, your friends will need help.”

* * *

Indeed, back at the battlefield, the other Qidengers and Yellow Buster were losing badly. Calam and Oomikaoo slashed Black backwards, Megaro managed to one-shot Yellow, Blue and Pink fell to Gelashi’s moves and Dimayta managed to catch Yellow Buster off guard and send her flying backwards. “Give it up.”, Calam stated.

“We’ve managed to knock you down.”, Megaro continued.

“And when you’re dead, VolDragon will destroy your world.”, Gelashi continued.

Dimayta cracked her whip again. “I’d say it’s been fun, but I’d be lying.”

“Wait.” Everyone looked up to see Takuto appearing with Jun. “You seem to be forgetting about me. And I have an ace in the hole.”

All of the villains except for Oomikaoo laughed at this. “You think one old woman can make a difference to this battle?”, Calam said mockingly.

Jun stepped forward. “I’ll show you exactly what this old woman can do.”, she stated, reaching for her Bio Brace. “Bioman!” She pressed the device, transforming into her suit. “Yellow 4!”

The others were shocked to see another Sentai legend warrior appear. Even Yellow Buster. “Yellow 4-senpai?”, she said with surprise.

Dimayta was undeterred. “I’ll take you down like I took down the other one.” She thrust her whip at her new opponent, who caught it and pulled the opponent towards her, throwing a punch.

“ _Rapid_ Kick!” Dimayta was then knocked back by Yellow Buster, now in her Powered Custom transformation. She turned to Yellow 4. “Senpai, if you’d lease, I’d like to fight with you.”

“Be my guest.”, Yellow 4 answered her. As Dimayta ran towards her, she pulled out her sword. “Yellow 4, _Thunder Sword_!” Her Bio Sword was surrounded with electricity, which she used to attack her foe.

Takuto then initiated his own transformation. “Kijuu Henge!” Shishi! Doubutsu Gashin! He then took out the Bioman Chip. “Let’s see what this power can do in battle.” He took out his Kijuu Caliber and inserted the Chip. **Qiden Charge! Bio**! “Qiden _Super Electron_!” His sword was charged with fire and electricity, that he then directed to the three Demon Generals, who were sent flying. “ _Nice_.”

The other Qidengers pulled themselves up. “That’s it.”, Pink stated. She took out the Chip that Yoko had inadvertently funnelled her energy into. “Yoko-senpai, I’ll use your power.” She inserted it into her Kijuu Magnum. **Qiden Charge! Buster**! “Qiden _Dimension Shoot!_ ” Her Magnum was surrounded with green-coloured binary code, before unleashing a beam of energy. The three Generals were hit once more.

To the side, Dimayta had been beaten down by Yellow 4 and Powered Custom Yellow Buster. “Time to finish this.”, Yellow 4 said as she summoned her Bio Arrow, while Yellow Buster attached her Sougan Blade to the Lio Blaster, forming the Lio Blaster Final Mode. **It’s Time For Final Buster!** “ _Bio Big Bow!_ ”

“ _Powered Deletion Shot!_ ” The two attacks were launched, combining in mid air to create a powerful ball of energy that hit Dimayta, knocking her back into her human appearance with an explosion.

Elsewhere the three Demon Generals and Oomikaoo were knocked back by the combined efforts of the Qidengers. “We can’t let them beat us.”, Calam growled.

The 5 Qidengers assembled their weapons and aimed at their enemies. “Qiden _Ultimate Final!_ ” The 5 beams hit the Voldos commanders, causing a huge explosion.

However, all of them survived it. “You’re tougher than we gave you credit for.”, Gelashi noted. “We won’t underestimate you again.”

“We can still destroy you here.”, Calam declared, slamming his sword into the ground. “ _Come on_ , VolDragon!”

As their enemies teleported out, the Qidengers witnessed the giant mutant that had once been Kyosuke Ryuota descend and continue its path of destruction. “We’re going to need to take things to the next level.”, Red noted as everyone took out their JuuKeitais and began dialling.

**Summon! Kijuu Lion! Kijuume! Kijuu Falcon! Kijuuki! Kijuuguar!**

The 5 machines appeared. “Kijuu Gattai!”, the Qidengers announced as they prepared a combination.

**Lion! Swordfish! Jaguar! Kendo Formation!**

With the command inputted, the lion’s head folded forward, with the neck section breaking in half and becoming a set of shoulders, with the front legs transforming into arms, the feet becoming clawed hands. The hind legs folded upwards, becoming a pair of regular legs. Finally, a humanoid head emerged from the area where the lion head had been. The Lion robot retracted it’s right arm and it’s left leg. The jaguar ran in to take the place of the leg, folding its hind body upwards, while the Swordfish attached to where the arm was, deploying a hand from the mouth. Finally, the back of the robot opened, folding out a helmet shaped like that of a gladiator, which attached onto the head. “KijuuOh Ken, linkup complete.” The robot swung its weapon at VolDragon, injuring it, but not actually causing it to fall. The monster then fired another beam from its mouth, knocking the robot back.

“We’re sitting ducks without a shield.”, Yellow stated. “Takuto, did you find a way for us to combine all of our Kijuu?”

Takuto then remembered something. “Of course, the Bioman Chip. Black, Pink, get ready.” He inserted the Bioman Chip into the robot, and then dialled the relevant code. “Hōhei Kijuu Gattai!”

**Lion! Tortoise! Falcon! Swordfish! Jaguar! Complete Formation!**

An arm extended outside of the turtle shell and connected into the slot that had been opened for it, with the flippers functioning as claws. The Falcon then folded its wings inwards and its head upward, with the back of the mecha plugging into the leg slot. Finally, a faceplate emerged from the front of the robot, covering the face of the robot. “Kanzen KijuuOh, linkup complete!”

VolDragon fired its beam at its enemy once more, only for Kanzen KijuuOh to walk through the explosions, totally unscathed. “ _Shield Beam_!”, Black declared, pulling his lever. The shield arm charged with energy, that it discharged at VolDragon, knocking him back several feet.

“Great Revolving Screw Kick!”, Yellow and Pink used their legs to jump into the air and spin around to hit the enemy at a great speed.

“KijuuKen!”, Blue announced, as she deployed the robot’s sword and used it to slash at the mutant, knocking it to the ground.

“It’s time to finish this.”, said Red, as he led the others in syncing their controls. “Kanzen KijuuOh, _Final End_!” Kanzen KijuuOh channelled all of its energy into the sword, before delivering a powerful slash to VolDragon, destroying it and causing a damaged Genjuu Brace with a Dragon Soul Chip to fall to the ground.

* * *

In her chambers, Moboroshina was fuming over her defeat. “I can’t believe those Qidengers brats have unlocked a full combination already.”, she fumed. “Worse, Kyosuke turned out to be totally useless, even as a mindless beast.”

“Don’t be too sure.”, Kagami assured her. “If we can scan their robot for its specifications, we can create a suitable counter. And don’t forget, we saw just what sort of monster one Soul Chip can create on its own.”

“Indeed.” Moboroshina went over to a dresser, opening it to reveal three other Soul Chips. “And if necessary, we can create another monster of equal power, using the method we used here and refining it.”

“See, our shared crusade against the old man isn’t a lost cause.”, Kagami said to her in his smooth voice. “We merely need to reposition the goalposts, as it were.”

* * *

Back in the city, Jun and Yoko placed their Soul Chips in the hand of Takuto and Hibiki. “These will be safe in your hands.”, Jun assured Takuto.

Yoko addressed Hibiki. “We’re entrusting the Earth’s safety to you now, Qidenger. We’ve put a lot of work into it, so don’t mess it up.” She and Jun then turned and walked off into the sunset.

With the job for the day done, the Qidengers then walked off to celebrate their victory. “I can’t believe we met two legendary Sentai warriors at once.”, Mio said. “From different eras even.”

“Who knows?” Wataru responded. “We might see more at some point.”

And so the Qidengers set off to celebrate, letting the weight of the world be lifted for a moment.

* * *

_The Qidengers are tasked with protecting a new transformation item created by the old man. However, Voldos sends Drillsame to take it and the Soul Chips kept with it for their own purposes. A desperate race begins, with Kamijo Ryosuke at the centre. Next time, look forward to “Heist! Protect the KijuuSlasher!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not much to say here, just that Kanzen KijuuOh’s combination scheme is recycled from my cancelled “Power Rangers Over Quartzer” fic. Yellow 4 appears here because Bioman is one of my favourite Sentai and I felt I should get ONE in there.
> 
> Like I said earlier, if you have an idea for a chapter, please write it out and send I in to me, since I do NOT have enough content to cover a fic of the length I’m aiming for. It would be greatly appreciated at this time, since I suffered burnout writing this chapter and may have to take a week off.


	6. Heist! Protect the KijuuSlasher!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Voldos targets the old man’s research department, looking to steal the latest transformation item. Can Kamijo thwart this inexplicable heist before it’s too late?

Calam was blasted back by Moboroshina. “You fool! You dare to think you could betray me with no consequence?”, she declared. “Because of your attempt at defiance, the Qidengers have unlocked a new combination with their giant robot.”

“Not only that.”, Oomikaoo said angrily. “But now we have the attention of at least two Super Sentai teams, who have bequeathed their power to the Qidengers. It’s likely that more will show up in the future.”

Calam weakly grovelled. “I’m sorry, Lady Moboroshina. It won’t happen again. Just give me another chance.”

“Pfft, like you deserve another chance.”, Gelashi tutted. “You’re nothing more than a relic trying to cling onto the day of Mairak. We need a field commander who has their loyalties straight.”

“I know what you’re insinuating.”, Moboroshina said with a stern look on her face. “But need I remind you that you created a Kanjin without my permission shortly before this incident? No, I am going to go with a loyal field commander, but it’ll be Oomikaoo here.”

“Yes, mistress.”, Oomikaoo bowed. “What do you wish of me?”

“The old man has his research facility up to something.”, Moboroshina stated. “Recover whatever the current project is and bring it to us.”

* * *

In the mansion, Kamijo was talking with the old man. “You wanted to see me, sir?”, he asked.

“Yes, _Mr. Kamijo._ ”, the old man answered. “Now that KijuuOh has reached its full power, we need to be pushing our artillery further to prevent Voldos from getting the edge over us. Which is why I’m having the R&D group working on a new transformation item, the KijuuSlasher. I also intend to scout a new member to join the Qidengers and give them their own Kijuu, which is currently under construction.”

“I sense a ‘but’ coming.”, Kamijo said. He knew the old man all too well, aside from his name.

“Voldos knows the location of the laboratory.”, the old man continued. “They’re likely to go after the KijuuSlasher and repurpose it for their own ends.”

Kamijo was intrigued. “What would these ends be?”

The old man shook his head. “I can’t tell you that yet.” He stood up and walked over to a scrapbook with profiles of several people, including Hajime Takuto, Otonaru Mio, Shinohara Wataru, Komaki Hibiki and several others. “Just know that it involves the reason I singled Hajime Takuto out to be a Qidenger. It’s vital that we use the KijuuSlasher to bring others like him into our confidence.”

Kamijo was confused, but he accepted the reasoning. “I’ll get ‘round to asking the others tomorrow.” He then turned around and left.

* * *

In the Voldos Fortress, Oomikaoo entered Megaro’s lab, manhandling the robotic scientist by his neck. “I need a Bukikai for my raid on the Qidengers’ scientific facility.”, he stated. “Something that can get me in and out of there quickly by going under.”

“‘Under’, is it?”, Megaro responded as he was tossed to the ground. “I’ve got some data on an Earth creature that could possess the necessary abilities, plus a tool that could be useful to create a pathway.” He brought up diagrams of a shark and a drill, which were superimposed into an image which was rearranged into the shape of the latest Bukikai. The machine then generated a humanoid shark with a drill where his left hand should be.

“Drillsame at your disposal, Oomikaoo-sama.”, the robot said, doing a flamboyant gesture. It spoke with a fairly campy voice. “What’s the biz we’ve got today, boss?”

“We have a facility to break into.”, Oomikaoo stated, drawing his sword. “Let’s go.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Kamijo was escorting Mio, Wataru and Hibiki on a tour of the scientific facility. Takuto was ‘conveniently’ unavailable when Kamijo had asked him. “I didn’t know Qidenger had a sophisticated setup like this.”, Wataru said with awe. “If only Misaki-Sensei could see this. She’d be kicking herself to know I’m seeing this.”

“I’m glad you’re enjoying this, Wataru-san.”, Hibiki said with some boredom. “I’d just like to know what was so important we were all pulled away from our lives to come here.”

“I’m glad you asked, Hibiki-san.” Kamijo then led the other 3 into a room, with a middle-aged man working on machinery. “This is Dr. Furuya, our benefactor’s resident technology expert, on loan from Cambridge University.”

Dr. Furuya looked up from his work. “Oh, Kamijo-san, _it’s nice to see you_.” He then turned to the other three. “And these must be our boss’s chosen Qidengers. I thought there were 4 others.”

“My brother isn’t available to come here.”, Mio stated. “He said that if there’s an emergency, we should call for him then.” She then looked over to a cupboard in the centre of the room. “Is that your latest invention, Furuya-Hakase?”

“I see you’re a very intuitive young _girl_.”, Dr. Furuya said in response. He then opened the cupboard, revealing a knife-like object, with a fist protector built in. “This is the KijuuSlasher, the next evolution of your transformation items. Though it’s ready to use, we’re waiting on someone compatible with this.” He held out a Soul Chip, featuring the likeness of a tiger. “Until then, this can only be used as a _weapon_.”

“A _weapon_ you say?” Everyone felt a rumbling, which was then followed by Oomikaoo and Drillsame emerging from the ground. “I think we’ll be taking that for ourselves.”, the former stated.

“Like hell you will.”, Wataru stated, launching himself at Oomikaoo, who merely swatted him aside. Hibiki then launched a kick at the enemy, only for him to block the hit and punch her backwards. “Drillsame, go.”

“Yessir.”, the Bukikai saluted before going over to grab the KijuuSlasher, picking it up with his hand, and causing it to lock into his grip. “I’d better secure that Soul Chip while I’m at it.” He turned towards Dr. Furuya and began pointing his drill at the man’s heart.

Kamijo jumped in front of the enemy robot, shielding the Doctor. “You’ll have to go through me if you want to get to the Doctor.”

“Okey-dokey”, Drillsame said as he plunged his drill into the human, who didn’t seem to react to receiving a drill to the heart. “Hey, how come that didn’t hurt you? Oh screw it, I don’t care.” He threw Kamijo to one side and continued his advance.

“Okay, I’ll give you the Tora chip.”, Dr. Furuya took the chip out and gave it to Drillsame, bowing his head. “Just don’t hurt anyone.”

Drillsame put the KijuuSlasher down and took the Soul Chip into his hand. “I’d better put this somewhere it’ll be safe. I know, in that slasher thingy.” He inserted the Chip into a dispenser on the blade and clenched the blade.

 **Tora! Denchaku! Doubutsu no Kiba!** (Tiger! Electroplate! Fang of the Animal!)

“Eh? What the?” Drillsame barely had time to react as he was surrounded with an aura, which dispersed to reveal he was now red-orange coloured and had black stripes on his body. “Whoa! This is so cool.” He commented, his voice now much deeper.

“That’s as far as you go.” Drillsame turned around to see QidenYellow, QidenPink and QidenBlue standing in his way. “We’re going to be taking that KijuuSlasher back.”, the latter of the three declared.

“I’d like to see you try.”, Drillsame said brashly. He engaged the three in a battle, wherein his new weapon managed to overpower Blue’s Kijuu Caliber and black shots from Pink and Yellows’ Kijuu Magnums, knocking all three of them down in the process. “Now to finish you off.” He began pressing the trigger on the handle of the KijuuSlasher.

 **Beast Slash**! The blade extended and surrounded itself with red energy, before delivering a series of energy slashes to the Qidengers, knocking them out of their powered suits. Oomikaoo was observing, impressed at all this. “Drillsame, enough. Let’s get out of here with your new toy.” He and Drillsame leapt into the hole, teleporting away once they were out of sight.

Mio got herself back on her feet and approached Kamijo, who was being tended to by Dr. Furuya. “Is he…?”, she asked, fearing the worst.

“I’m sorry.”, Dr. Furuya confirmed. He moved aside to show the hole in the man’s chest, going straight through his heart. “He’s dead.”

As if on cue, Kamijo regained consciousness, shocking everyone. “What? Did they get away?”, he asked. “Why are you all staring?”

“We’d better call Takuto-san in.”, Wataru suggested.

* * *

In his laboratory, Megaro observed the power output levels for Drillsame. “ _Oh no_. The Bukikai’s fuel cells are increasing beyond its safety parameters.”

“I’m going to guess that’s bad.”, Dimayta snarked.

“Indeed.”, Megaro said in response. “This power level could override the AI and send the Bukikai into a mindless rampage.”

* * *

Out in the city, the powered-up Drillsame began to convulse, as if in pain. “What’s happening?”, Oomikaoo asked his servant.

“Must… destroy…”, Drillsame growled, before brandishing his KijuuSlasher and sending several slashes of energy that knocked Oomikaoo down. The robot then growled and began attacking the city entirely of its own accord.

* * *

From within his mirror world, Kagami observed this. “So, it seems that the Soul Chips have similar effects on machines as they do organics. “Fascinating.”

* * *

In the Qidengers’ research lab, Takuto had joined with the others, taking similar interest in Kamijo’s gaping hole in his chest. “This isn’t a fresh wound.”, Takuto noted. “You’ve had this for some time.”

“What?”, Hibiki said with shock. “This sort of injury isn’t something you can walk away with. How are you even alive?”

Kamijo sighed. “Well, I suppose this was going to come out sooner or later.” He stood up and went over to the window. “It all happened two years ago…”

* * *

_“I was just a common thug back then. A university dropout who wasn’t able to hold down a steady job. I found a place in Mio’s father’s gang, mostly as a lookout. One day, during a bank robbery, I saw a woman being assaulted by a mugger. Even though I knew it could cause problems for the gang, I stepped in to help the woman. For my troubles, the mugger shot me right through the heart. I thought I was dead. But I woke up some time later, in the house of the old man. He revealed that the woman was himself in disguise, having put himself in danger to find someone who could be depended upon to do the right thing. I had been revived from my death specifically to assist him in gathering the warriors to defeat Voldos when it returned.”_

* * *

The other 4 Qidengers were shocked to hear this. “And all this time I thought you were just another two bit hug.”, Takuto said with little emotion. “Don’t think we’re friends now, just know that I don’t utterly hate you anymore.”

“I understand.”, Kamijo nodded.

Wataru decided to kill the moment. “I’d hate to break up this little party of yours, but we need to focus on finding the stolen KijuuSlasher and Soul Chip from that robot.”

“I can handle that.”, Dr. Furuya spoke up. “In case something like this happened, I installed a tracking emitter in the KijuuSlasher. We should have the location right about…” a few seconds later, a marker appeared on the screen. “Now.”

“He’s in Sakura City.”, Hibiki noted. “That’s not far from here.”

“Then what’re we waiting for?”, asked Mio. “Let’s go.”

* * *

Sure enough, the berserk Drillsame was causing mass property destruction in Sakura City. “Burn it all. Burn it all down!”, the rampaging Bukikai growled. “HahahaahHahHaHAhaahHaah!”

The 5 Qidengers came running forward to the scene of destruction. “That’s far enough, Voldos.”, Takuto stated. “Your destruction ends here.”

In Drillsame’s insanity, he was confused by the newcomers. “Who are you people? What do you want with me?”, he said in fear.

The 5 took out their Soul Chips, inserting them into their JuuKeitais. **Shishi! Kame! Falcon! Kajiki! Jaguar!** “Kijuu Henge!” All pressed their buttons. **Doubutsu Gashin!**

After their transformations were complete, the 5 began to pose. “QidenRed!”

“QidenBlack!”

“QidenPink!”

“QidenBlue!”

“QidenYellow!”

The 5 then posed together. “Kijuu Sentai Qidenger!”

Drillsame was now terrified. “Get back.”, he cried out, swinging his KijuuSlasher and mashing the trigger. “Keep away.”

 **Beast Slash!** The waves of energy hit the the pavement behind the Qidengers, causing explosions behind them. From the sidelines, Oomikaoo leapt into the fight. “He may be going crazy, but the Bukikai is still an asset I won’t allow to be defeated.” He summoned a group of Vordorons with a wave of his hands. “Get them!”

As the other Qidengers took out the Vordorons, Black took on Oomikaoo once more. “I’ve been thinking on my own origins with our benefactor lately.”, Black said as the two parried their swords. “And I’ve been wondering why someone like you would serve someone as twisted as Moboroshina.”

“If you must know the truth, I don’t fully know myself.”, was Oomikaoo’s response to this, followed by him spinning around knocking his opponent backwards. “Moboroshina keeps me around because she sees me as her confidant. I should’ve been gone long ago, but she has me kept around to help fulfil her plans.”

“So, you’re just like me.”, Black noted, hesitating to continue the fight. Taking advantage of the confusion, his opponent knocked him down and teleported away.

The other 4 Qidengers were facing Drillsame, dodging his hits and firing and slashing at him with their weapons. Red then leapt into the air, inserting the Bioman chip into his Kijuu Calibur. **Qiden Charge! Bio!** “Qiden _Super Electron!_ ” The attack collided with the Bukikai’s hand, separating it from the arm and sending it and the KijuuSlasher flying over the railing, before using the sword to impale Drillsame, causing it to explode.

“What happened?”, Drillsame asked as he was restored as a giant, now back to his original colour scheme.

“Let’s deal with this problem.”, Black said as he and the others began dialling for their Kijuu.

**Lion! Tortoise! Falcon! Blocker Formation!**

The Lion, Falcon and Tortoise mecha combined into a robot. “KijuuOh Tate, linkup complete!”

“Let’s go.”, Drillsame declared as he launched his drill at the enemy robot, which blocked the hit. “In that case, I’ll test just how effective that shield is.” He began drilling underground, vanishing into the hole he created.

“He won’t escape the two of us.”, Yellow radioed, as he had Kijuuguar feel the ground below them for a pulse. “He’s moving that way.” He had his mecha point in the direction he was indicating with its paw.

“On it.”, Blue responded, jamming Kijuuki into the ground, using the force to knock Drillsame out of the ground, its drill severed. “Nii-san, you can finish it now.”

“‘Kay.”, Red said as he operated the controls. “KijuuOh _Shield Break!_ ” KijuuOh detached its shield and kicked it towards Drill same, hitting it with enough force to destroy the robot.

* * *

In her chambers, Moboroshina bowed in front of her mirror. “Apologies, Kagami-sama. We failed to retrieve the KijuuSlasher from the old man.”

“That is of no concern.”, Kagami assured her. “The KijuuSlasher was merely a toy of that old fool’s, being used to shroud the presence of the _Ultimate_. With it out of the way for now, our search can continue unabated.”

* * *

Back at the lab, Kamijo was speaking with Dr. Furuya. “I’m sorry we couldn’t retrieve the KijuuSlasher.”, he said.

“ _That’s okay._ ”, Dr. Furuya assured him. “Nobody without compatibility with the Tora Chip can use it to transform into a Qidenger. And anyone who doesn’t will simply end up as a monster. Either way, we’ll find it eventually. But for now, the plans are safe in our hands and can be used to create a new one.”

“That’s good to know.”, Kamijo breathed a sigh of relief. “But I just wonder who’ll find it. And I can only hope they have a strong compatibility, otherwise we’ll have a monster problem on our hands.”

* * *

In an alleyway, a mysterious figure picked up the KijuuSlasher, equipping it to their wrist and pressing the trigger.

* * *

_Dimayta’s VolNojaku is going around altering personalities. Not even our Qidengers are immune to it’s effects. Hurry, Wataru. You must reverse this effect before it becomes permanent. Next time, look forward to “Big Shock! Hibiki is an Idol?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I’ve had my week off and I can get back to regular updates to the fic. This chapter will put the focus on Kamijo, since he’s currently the least developed of the main 5. It will also give a hint as to not one, but two newcomers to the Qidengers, who will debut within a few chapters.


	7. Big Shock! Hibiki is an Idol?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new Vorjuu scrambles the personalities of Takuto, Kamijo, Mio and Hibiki, leaving Wataru as the only hope for humanity. But he soon finds help from… Moboroshina?

Wataru and Hibiki were walking down the streets, having a discussion. “It’s strange how a lot of our members have something strange going for them.”, Wataru pointed out. “I mean, Takuto-san has his ability to sense when Voldos sends out one of their monsters, Kamijo has the fact he’s still alive after already being killed once.”

“Not to mention that old man.”, Hibiki added. “We don’t know anything about him, other than that he has a large organisation, the power to teleport people and resurrection abilities. I wish we knew more about him, but…” She was interrupted by a large crowd of girls lined up outside a theatre. “What’s going on today?”

“A talent search.”, said a middle-aged man in a fancy suit, walking past them. “Kirihara Kunio, record producer. I’m looking for a new idol to represent my talent agency.” He then took a good look at Hibiki, having a look of surprise on his face. “You there, young lady. How do you feel about an audition for my agency?” He handed her a business card.

Hibiki took the card with a sheepish smile. “That’s nice of you to offer, but I don’t think I’ll be stopping by. Now then Wataru-san, how far is it to this friend’s house?” She dragged her friend away, to carry on to their destination.

* * *

In the Voldos Fortress, Dimayta was standing in front of Moboroshina with a new Vorjuu, one resembling a humanoid melon with horns protruding from his head. “This is VolNojaku, a beast with the power to take the core of what makes a person themselves and corrupt it, changing their personality. Imagine if we used it on the Qidengers.”

Moboroshina seemed intrigued. “We could alter their hearts of justice to make them thralls of the darkness.”, she said with some slight interest. “But if I’m to give you the go-ahead to unleash this monster, I need some assurance of its usefulness. Namely, a demonstration of its talents.”

“As you wish my Queen.”, Dimayta bowed. “Servant, you can come in.”

As if on cue, Calam entered the room, weakly tripping over the floor. “Apologies, Moboroshina-sama.”, he whined. “I’m not worthy to appear in your presence, being as cowardly as I am now.”

“I knew you’d ask for a test.”, Dimayta laughed. “So I deliberately chose your least favourite of your minions and put him through the process.”

“A good show indeed, Dimayta.”, Moboroshina smiled. “You have my permission to begin the plan.”

* * *

Back down on the Earth, Wataru and Hibiki had arrived at their destination, with the former knocking on the door. It was answered by a young man, wearing a red shirt with a white jacket, who Wataru didn’t recognise. “I’m sorry, I thought that this was the Miyashita residence.”, he said with confusion.

“It is.”, the man assured him. “I’m simply staying with the family until I can get back on my feet.” He held out his hand for a shake. “I’m Tanjo Takumi. You must be Shinohara Wataru. Hiroshi-kun’s told me about you.”

“Hey Onii-san, what’s holding you up at the door.” A younger boy, the source of the voice, came to the door. He then got a good look at the one outside and gained a smile on his face. “Oh, Wataru-Onii-san, you came like you said you would.” He then saw Hibiki. “Is this the friend you said you’d bring?”

“Yes.”, Wataru answered the boy. “Hiroshi-kun, Hibiki-chan will be helping tutor you through your weak points. Now, shall we go inside?” The 4 proceeded to enter, with neither Wataru nor Hibiki noticing the way Takumi eyed them.

* * *

In the park, VolNojaku appeared, proceeding to use its powers on the unsuspecting populace. A woman went from happy to receive a ring from her proposing boyfriend to slapping him away and demanding diamonds. A police officer ceased his patrol and sat down on a bench. A woman who was jogging intently suddenly stopped and began robbing an ice cream stand.

* * *

From nearby, Takuto sensed the presence of the Vorjuu, calling the others. “Everyone, I can sense Voldos from the park. Meet me there.”

* * *

At her school, Mio received the message, as did Kamijo at the mansion. “Roger.”, the two responded. They then set off.

* * *

At the Miyashita house, Hibiki and Wataru were on a break, talking with each other. “So, how do you know this family?”, Hibiki asked.

“My landlord is Hiroshi-kun’s uncle.”, came the answer. “He comes over to visit sometimes and recently, his grades at school have been slipping. So I mentioned that I know a teacher who works with kids of his age and she might be able to help him.”

“You’re not wrong there.”, Hibiki said to him. “If there’s someone in trouble, I’ll put everything else aside to help them out.” Then their JuuKeitais began beeping with an alarm sound. “Looks like there’s trouble out there.”

“From this message, it seems to be at the park.”, Wataru noted. He then called out to Hiroshi and Takumi. “Sorry guys, but we have to extend our break a little longer.”

The two then set off running out of the house, as Takumi looked on from above. “Interesting.”, he said as he took out something from his pocket and looked at it. “I look forward to working with you two in the future.”

* * *

Wataru and Hibiki made it to the park, where they found their three comrades waiting. But something was off: Takuto was hunched on the floor, Kamijo was inspecting blades of grass and Mio was kicking over trash cans. “What’s going on here?”, Wataru asked. “Why aren’t you dealing with the Voldos problem?”

“What’s the point?”, Takuto asked glumly. “We tried taking it on and it managed to get a hit on us before we could’ve ven transform. We might as well give up.”

“I’ve found something more interesting.”, Kamijo said, his voice having become more strained, as if he was still going through puberty. “Did you know that blades of grass that grow under the trees are shorter than the ones growing away from the trees? I think it’s fascinating.”

Mio on the other hand, seemed to be getting angry at the two. “I can’t believe you two. That thing gets the drop on us and you’re willing to just give up.”, she yelled. “Well I’m going to get that thing. It can’t be too far away by now.”

Hibiki breathed a sigh of relief. “At least one of you’s still willing to fight with us. Let’s go.” She set off walking, with Mio following her.

Wataru, on the other hand, was more hesitant. “Mio isn’t normally this aggressive… Takuto isn’t this cowardly… Kamijo isn’t this boring…” He had a realisation. “Hibiki, don’t let the monster make contact with you.”

Hibiki turned around to react, resulting in her being hit by a tendril from VolNojaku. She collapsed from the hit as the Vorjuu revealed itself.

“That’s him. The punk who got us before.”, Mio declared. “It’s time I got even with him.” She took out her JuuKeitai. “Kijuu Henge!” She transformed into QidenBlue and began beating up the Vorjuu, who pushed her back by shooting seeds from his mouth.

“I’d better get in there.”, Wataru stated, pulling out his JuuKeitai and commencing his transformation. “Kijuu Henge!”

Blue was knocked to the ground by VolNojaku, who continued to advance on her. Yellow then jumped in and punched the monster, causing it to tumble backwards. “Geez, I was handling that jerk before you came in.”, Blu complained, slapping Yellow on the back.

“Didn’t look like that to me.”, Yellow responded. “This thing’s spell has made you violent and short-tempered. And he’s no genius, but he’s smart enough to use that against you.” During this moment of distraction, VolNojaku tried striking Yellow with his tentacles, only for nothing to happen. “But fortunately, he doesn’t realise that he needs to make contact with my skin in order to use his powers on me.”

“Oh that’s just too bad.” The two were knocked back by a blast of energy from Dimayta. “If I can’t get you now, then I’ll have to hide my time. VolNojaku, go about your business elsewhere.” With a crack of the whip, the monster leapt into the air and landed within the city. Dimayta them made her exit.

“Geez.”, Blue fumed as she reverted back to being Mio. “Now I have to keep hunting that thing down.”

“How about you do that?”, Wataru suggested as he also returned to normal. “Meanwhile, I’ll make sure our friends are put somewhere they can’t create much of a ruckus. Now then Hibiki-san, let’s assess…” He turned around to see that Hibiki had vanished. “ _Okay_ , I’ll have to find her and do something about these two.”

* * *

In her private chambers, Moboroshina noticed Kagami’s face convulsing in pain. “What’s happening, Kagami-sama?”, she asked, desperately.

“Part of the Ultimate has been corrupted.”, Kagami said, cringing as the mirror world glowed red. “If this continues, then the power will be destroyed. And when that happens, I too cease.”

Moboroshina had a realisation. “Dimayta’s Vorjuu. This must be its doing.” She then bowed to the mirror. “Don’t worry, I’ll take out the source of the disturbance.” She stood up and teleported out.

* * *

In the theatre, Kirihara Kunio was going through multiple failed wannabe idols, including a middle-aged overweight man, a little girl and someone with no singing talent whatsoever. “Too many failures… Am I ever going to find some new talent for my agency?”, he thought to himself. “Send in the next one.”, he called out.

To his shock, the next contestant was the woman he thought was a good choice when he saw her earlier that day. She was now dressed in a pink minidress, purple stockings and had her hair done in a ponytail. “Hello, I’m Komaki Hibiki, and I’m going to bring a smile to everyone’s hearts.” She then proceeded to give a show stopping performance, to the astonishment of everyone present.

Kunio was happy at this performance. “Hibiki-kun, how would you like to be our next idol?”

Hibiki was ecstatic at this. “For everyone’s happiness, I’d love to put smiles on their faces with music. I’ll do it.”

* * *

Kunio stood up and shook her hand. “Good. We’ll make our announcement soon and sign the contract tomorrow.”

Out in the Tokyo city centre, Wataru was still looking around for his friend. “Come on, Hibiki. Where could you have gone in your altered state?”, he thought.

As if to answer his question, he saw the face of his friend, performing her song, appear on the jumbotron. “ _Earlier today, Nihon Lancaster located their latest act in the form of Komaki Hibiki, an elementary school teacher from Hakone Town. She is expected to sign the contract tomorrow.”_

“ _Oh no._ ”, Wataru stated. “I’d better tell Oji-san.” He took out his JuuKeitai and called the old man.

* * *

“Yes, this won’t be good.”, the old man said over the phone. “If Hibiki-chan does become a full-time idol, then it could cut into the time she spends as a Qidenger. You need to restore her and the others to normal before tomorrow. I’ll take care of Takuto.”

Takuto reacted in fear when Rin tried to touch him. “No, keep away!”, he cried, cowering into the corner.

“ _Don’t worry about Kamijo-san_.”, Wataru said over the phone. “ _I’ve put him to use somewhere he won’t cause a ruckus._ ”

* * *

At the Miyashita place, Kamijo was educating a confused Hiroshi, as an equally confused Takumi looked on. “The sum of the square roots of two sides of a right triangle are equal to the square roots of the remaining side.”, he recited monotonously.

Hiroshi was upset over his new tutor. “What happened to Komaki-sensei? She made this seem fun.”

* * *

Elsewhere in the city, Mio came around the corner to see more chaos, seemingly caused by VolNojaku. A mother was throwing a baby in its carriage into a river, a pair of thieves were giving out their loot to the people and a doctor was ignoring a man dying in the street. “That thing’s been through here.”, Mio’s tasted, cracking her knuckles. “I’m gonna find that jerk and beat him senseless.” As if on cue, VolNojaku leapt out from an alleyway and began launching its tentacles at the populace, causing them to run amok. “So there you are, Vorjuu. Well I’m going to stop you.”

**Kajiki! Doubutsu Gashin!**

“Kijuu Henge!” Mio transformed into QidenBlue and began hitting VolNojaku with her Kijuu Caliber. “I’m taking you down, because all those personality changes you inflicted on the others are just annoying.” She then delivered a kick to the Vorjuu, knocking it backwards. “Time to take you out.”

VolNojaku tried to reach out with his tendrils and hit her again, only for Wataru as QidenYellow to jump in, grab the tendril and turn it on its sender, inverting its personality. VolNojaku suddenly stepped forward and opened its arms to take a hit. “Just as I thought. The creature can’t protect itself against its own abilities.”

“And now it’s letting itself get killed.”, Mio stated. “I wish I’d thought of that.” She took out the Bioman Chip and inserted it into her Kijuu Caliber, while Wataru inserted the Go-Busters chip into his Kijuu Magnum. “Qiden _Super Electron!_ ”

**Qiden Charge! Bio!”**

Wataru aimed his weapon at the same target. “Qiden _Deletion Shot!_ ”

**Qiden Charge! Buster!**

The two attacks hit the monster, destroying it upon impact. Dimayta then appeared from the shadows, holding a Soul Chip bearing a Roc. “I think I’ll give you some extra power when you come back.”, she commented, throwing the medal into VolNojaku’s remains. When the beam from the Voldos Fortress hit the creature, it now bore a pair of wings.

“We’d better stop that thing.”, Yellow said, pulling out the Lion chip. “Luckily I took this from Takuto before I set out.” He inserted it into his JuuKeitai.

But before he could do anything else, something was thrown at him. He looked up to see Moboroshina standing above him in her armoured form, before looking down at the object to see that it was the Phoenix Soul Chip. “Don’t get any ideas, boy.”, she said. “I’m merely as desperate to get rid of that thing as you are. I want that back when you’re done.”

“Okay then.”, Yellow nodded as he and Blue continued with the summoning.

**Summon: Kijuu Lion! Kijuuki! Kijuuguar!**

The three mecha appeared and began the combination into KijuuOh. “Kijuu Gattai!”, the two Qidengers declared.

**Lion! Swordfish! Jaguar! Kendo Formation!**

The three came together to form a robot. “KijuuOh Ken, linkup complete!” The robot began swinging its sword at VolNojaku, who continued to cower in fear from the effects of its own spell. It then summoned its new wings and took off into the air. “Damn, we’ll never catch up to it now.”, Blue fumed.

“Don’t be so sure.”, said Yellow, taking out the Phoenix Chip. “Let’s see how compatible this is.” He inserted it into the JuuKeitai

 **Ho-Oh**! The voice was much lower than the norm

“GenPhoenix, summon!” He then activated the summon function.

**Summon, GenPhoenix!**

The mechanical jet flew in from its pocket dimension, flying towards the robot. “Genjuu Busou!”

**GenPhoenix! Connection Engage!**

GenPhoenix attached to the back of the KijuuOh in much the same way it did to Kijuu Lion before. Only this time, the helmet had the face split in half and fold backwards, so that it resembled a flight helmet more than the iron mask it had before. “Sore KijuuOh, linkup complete!” The newly formed robot quickly jetted upwards to meet with its opponent, delivering a slash to it that knocked it down. “Let’s finish this. KijuuOh, Straight Crash!” The robot delivered a slash to VolNojaku, vanquishing it for good in a fiery inferno as the Rok Soul Chip fell down to the ground.

In the robot, Mio had a flash over her face, before getting confused. “What happened?”, she asked. “How did I get here.”

“The spell’s been broken.”, Wataru answered her, breathing a sigh of relief.

* * *

From the top of a skyscraper, a figure in a red and white suit with a tiger motif and the number “0” on his chest. “So this is the Qidengers’ powers.”, he noted. “I look forward to working with you in the future.”

* * *

In the old man’s mansion, Takuto returned to his normal confident self. “What’s happening?”, he asked, as he began inspecting himself. “And who took my Soul Chip?”

* * *

At a press conference, Hibiki also returned to normal. “What am I doing in front of all these people?”, he asked. “And in these clothes”, she said with shock at her own outfit.

* * *

Wataru appeared in an alleyway. “Hey, Moboroshina. I’ve got your Soul Chip right here if you want it.”

Moboroshina appeared in front of him. “I’m surprised you’re so willing to give it back to me.”, she said. “I would’ve thought you’d wanted to keep it for your own use.”

“I don’t need it if I want to do that.”, Wataru stated. “I’ve got the data catalogued inside my JuuKeitai to recreate it if I need to. Plus this gives me a chance to ask you some questions. Who are you really? You’re obviously human like us, so what caused you to join with Voldos? And why did you help us with this Vorjuu?”

“You’re right.”, Moboroshina said with a smirk. “I was once like you. Working as a Sentai for that old man who recruited you and made you a warrior without telling you why. People got hurt because of that, so I became Moboroshina to avenge those who were lost to that fool’s poor mentor ship. Take my advice, don’t trust him, or anyone who devotes themselves so loyally to him.” She picked up the Soul Chip and began to walk off. “As for your last question, let’s just say that you losing would’ve negatively affected me as well.” She then vanished, leaving Wataru lost for words.

* * *

Sometime later, Hibiki was sitting in her classroom, marking papers. “I can’t believe I almost decided to become an idol.”, she thought to herself. “Even if I had the time for that, I wouldn’t do it.” She then received a call on her phone. “Hello.”

“ _Hibiki-san, it’s me, Takumi. You know, the man living with Hiroshi-kun. I got your number from Wataru-san._ ”, came the voice from the other end.

“Oh, I’m sorry about that.”, Hibiki said profusely. “I had something come up and it took up too much time, so I couldn’t -.”

“ _Oh, don’t worry about that. The substitute Wataru sent in ended up saying so much seemingly random facts that Hiroshi managed to pass his mathematics retest with the knowledge he gained_.” Hibiki smiled at this. “ _I don’t know who he was, or what his number is, so I’m passing on Hiroshi’s thanks to you.”_

Hibiki smiled at this. “Well, I’ll be sure to pass on his thanks to that friend.”

* * *

_4 of the Qidengers are sent off on a training retreat with a warrior from another space altogether. When the warrior’s old enemy manifests, the 4 must show that they can create their own legends. Join us next time for “Training! The Legendary Saviour and the Space Shogun!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This idea came about after watching an episode of Superhuman Samurai Syber Squad. I decided that the best candidate for the monster in this story was a Vorjuu, so I looked up a list of mythical creatures and turned up the Amanojaku. 
> 
> I decided to have Wataru be unaffected because I felt it would be more appealing to have someone still able to fight, ala that episode of Go-Onger with Gunpei all alone. 
> 
> Next week will feature the first of many cameos that are meant to appeal solely to one person, who will probably never read this.


	8. Training! The Legendary Saviour and the Space Shogun!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new player has entered the scene courtesy of the Koga Konzern… but that will have to wait, as 4 of them are sent to Kyushu to meet with an important figure.

The Qidengers were engaged in battle, being thrown around by a Kanjin that resembled an overtly attractive woman. “I hate it when these things pose a threat.”, Takuto commented.

“I agree.”, was Kamijo’s response. “It makes it much harder to defeat them.” He then pulled out his Kijuu Caliber and turned to Wataru. “I need you to give me some covering fire while I charge at that thing.”

Wataru looked concerned, as he remembered the words Moboroshina said to him earlier. ‘Take my advice, don’t trust him, or anyone who devotes themselves so loyally to him.’ He shook the thought from his head. “Ok.”, he said with some hesitation. As Kamijo went in to strike, Wataru aimed his weapon, but ended up being frozen with doubt.

“Yellow, what’re you doing?”, Hibiki called out. She aimed her own Kijuu Magnum, shooting quickly. But due to the timing being messed up, Kamijo was hit by the shot, while the Kanjin remained unharmed. “See, I could’ve avoided doing that if you’d made the shot when signalled.”

“I panicked!”, Yellow cried out. “What if I killed the Kanjin’s host?”

Takuto seemed angered by this. “Have you forgotten? They can’t die as long as their emotional energy exists.”, he yelled.

Only Mio seemed to keep a cool head. “Shouldn’t we be focusing on actually destroying the Kanjin?”

As if on cue, an explosion protruded from the Kanjin, causing it to fall backwards and begin to revert to her human identity. Wataru took this opportunity to run forward and undo his transformation, going over to the poor woman. He’d been doing his research and knew this woman’s vice was her inability to find a new boyfriend after her last breakup. “Hey, baby.”, he said to her in his most smooth, seductive voice. “Call me later for a good time.” He threw a card with his phone number to her, causing the dark cloud engulfing her to disperse. Wataru then got up and turned around. “Okay, who fired that shot?”

The question was soon answered when everyone turned around to see a figure standing there. It resembled VolKraken, the Vorjuu they had defeated during their first battle, with parts of the arms, the torso and one of the legs from Gatleander. A pair of cannons on the shoulders completed the look. Wataru promptly retransformed as a man in a suit came close to them. “How did you like our latest project, Qidengers?”, the man asked. “We’re going to be showing it off on the news tonight. I hope you’re watching.” He then turned and walked off with the unholy hybrid creature.

* * *

That night, at the old man’s mansion, the 5 watched the news, which showed the creature unloading it weapons on the Kanjin they were fighting, destroying it. Thankfully, any image of Wataru’s efforts to quell any further appearances was obscured by the smoke. “ _This is exclusive footage of Koga Konzern’s latest creation Epithmeus, which proved effective in the destruction of the latest monster to attack our country. We spoke with the CEO, Koga Tetsuya, about his latest creation.”_

_The picture changed to a middle aged man. “As you all know, there are people possessing issues with the Super Sentai, especially the Qidengers. Kousuke Ryuota was one of them, and we all know what happened to him. Which is why I want to offer something for the protection of those people. And thus, from the remains of two recent threats, I created Epithmeus, named for the brother of Prometheus who was tasked with power that could be dangerous in the wrong hands.”, he said. “But don’t worry Qidengers, I have no intention of putting you out of business. Epithmeus will merely be lightening the load, so to speak.”_

Kamijo turned off the television. “I don’t trust this. He obviously doesn’t know his mythology, or he’d realise Epithmeus failed in his duty, leading to evil being unleashed on Earth.” He punched the wall.

“We wouldn’t have had to depend on that thing to defeat the monster if someone had made the shot when told.”, Takuto commented, eyeing Wataru. “What happened out there? Why didn’t you take the shot?”

“Weren’t you listening?”, Wataru yelled defensively. “I just panicked. And at least I didn’t hit my own friend by shooting.”

“I wouldn’t have shot him if you’d taken the shot when you were supposed to.”, Hibiki snapped.

“Enough!”, Mio shouted, much to everyone’s shock. “We can’t let infighting tear us apart. That could severely cost us if Voldos were to attack now.”

“Precisely.”, the old man entered the room, nodding. “Mio recognises that the 4 of you are going through problems of your own. So while she stays behind to handle the Epithmeus problem, you’ll be spending time in Kyushu, at the Shittoshishi-Onna’s Rock, near Mt. Aso in Kumamoto.”

The 4 were shocked to hear this. “N-no, we can solve this.”, Takuto insisted. “We don’t need the _break_.”

“This isn’t a _break_.”, the old man insisted. “You’ll be going there to learn a lesson about caring for yourselves.” He pulled out some plane tickets. “Your plane leaves tomorrow, now get going.”

* * *

In the Voldos Fortress, Gelashi had been called to Moboroshina’s throne room. “You wanted to see me, Moboroshina-sama?”

“Yes, Gelashi.”, was Moboroshina’s answer. “Calam and Megaro are working on a plan to deal with the human’s new toy. I on the other hand, what you to deal with the Qidengers. The 4 of them are on their way to the Shittoshishi-Onna’s Rock. I have it in good information that you’re familiar with this locale.”

Gelashi looked slightly unnerved. “I think I know it.” She then took out two balls of negative energy from her pockets. “Wrath and Lust. Combined with my own envy, I can attain the power of the ultimate dark god.”

“You’ll have to put your collection of negative eneries on hold.”, Moboroshina stated. “For now, focus on defeating the Qidengers.”

“ _Yessir_.”, Gelashi saluted as she turned and departed.

* * *

In Kyushu, a day later, the 4 Qidengers that had been sent on the retreat arrived near the rock. The sight had buildings that were all, to some extent, ravaged or destroyed. Not a single person still lived there and what looked like a lake nearby was now dried up. “This place has seen better days.”, Takuto commented.

“The brochure has quite the legend behind this place.”, Wataru said, reading from said brochure. “This place was once home to a young, rich maiden. She had everything she could ever want. Wealth, beauty, respect. Everything except for a man to love her for who she was. Every man in the village that could love her genuinely was in love with other women. The woman left the village in envy, wishing for every other woman in the village’s deaths. Soon after, her envy transformed her into a lion who destroyed the entire village, along with everyone in it.”

“Seems a little fantastic.”, Hibiki commented. “But something about it seems familiar.”

“Can’t be any less fantastic than an old man who can teleport people elsewhere, or being brought back to live from being shot through the heart.”, Kamijo pointed out. “If anything, this seems rather tame.”

Takuto looked around. “Well, there doesn’t seem to be much to suggest anyone’s going to teach us anything.”, he noted. As he said this, he saw an object falling from the sky, heading towards their area. “Take cover.”, he yelled. Everyone dived down, as the object hit the ground, creating a small fireball, which dispersed to reveal a figure. It was a humanoid man, in his mid-thirties, wearing a red leather overcoat. Everyone was shocked to see him pull himself up. “Who are you?”, Takuto asked.

* * *

From afar, Gelashi also observed the object crashing. “That’s interesting.”, she noted, before getting a reaction. “I sense a great evil is about to awaken, one with a strong sense of pride.” She perked up at this. “I can make use of this.”

* * *

Back in the clearing, the man finished brushing off what little ash was on him. “My word, looks like these landing aren’t any easier to make than in normal space.” He then looked around and saw Takuto, Kamijo, Wataru and Hibiki standing around him, all looking shocked. “So I seemed to have arrived back on Earth at least, going by the local fashions.”

“I’ll ask you again.”, Takuto stated, feeling a twinge of something within him. “Who are you?”

“Oh, forgive me.”, the man put his hand on his chest. “I am Ohtori Tsurugi, the Space Federation President and the Kyurangers’ Houou Soldier.” He looked around and saw that they had no idea what he was talking about. “My word, it’s my experience with Lucky and the others all over again.”

“‘Kyuranger’.”, Wataru thought for a moment, before having a realisation. “You mean, like another _legend_ Sentai?”

“‘Sentai’?”, Tsurugi asked, with some confusion. “Ah, like the Lupinrangers and the Patrangers. I probably ended up back in their space as a result of the distortion.”

“What’s this about a distortion?”, Hibiki asked. “I think we should know about this?”

Tsurugi sighed. “Well, I suppose I should establish an alliance with you by discussing my reasons for being here. My organisation detected a distortion in the universal fabric from these coordinates on Earth. I decided to investigate myself, as everyone else was off on their own tasks. When I got near the distortion, it messed with my instrumentation, causing me to crash. Who knows what other effects it had on me -.” Tsurugi suddenly felt a pain in his chest, causing him to interrupt himself.

“ _ **This power.**_ ”, a new voice, much deeper than Tsurugi’s admittedly already deep voice, emerged from his mouth, as his eyes glowed purple. “ ** _I can use this._** ” He began to suck a black energy out of Takuto, which then merged with purple energy from inside Tsurugi and reformed into a new figure. He resembled an archangel, with skeletal wings, his brain covering his head and chest, with a skeletal face that possessed glowing red eyes. He wielded a scythe. “I am Don Armage, the one who rules the universe and the Earth.”

“We don’t care about who you are.”, Takuto stated. “You’re still going down.” He had everyone pull out their Soul Chips and JuuKeitais. “Everyone, let’s go.”

“Kijuu Henge!” Everyone inserted their Soul Chips and dialled their respective numbers.

**Shishi! Kame! Falcon! Jaguar! Doubustu Gashin!**

The 4 transformed into their powered suits. Tsurugi recovered in time to get a good look at them. “My word. So this space has its own legendary saviours.”

The Qidengers charged in, with Red and Black hitting Don Armage with their Kijuu Calibers and Yellow and Pink shooting at him with their Kijuu Magnums. However, none of these seemed to affect him. “You fools. I am the power of darkness itself.”, he declared, charging his Dark Scythe with energy and swinging it at the 4, knocking them back. “It took more than you to defeat me before. You don’t stand a chance.” He swung his scythe at each of them, as they tried to defend, in what turned out to be a futile effort. “And now to finish all of you.”

 **Choushinsei!** A blinding light covered the area, obscuring Don Armage’s vision. When it cleared, he saw that everyone was gone, including Ohtori Tsurugi. Then a female creature resembling a lion appeared before him. “So, it looks like you and I have a common opponent to deal with. How about we work together to resolve our problems?”, she asked.

“I don’t have good experience with lions.”, Don Armage commented. “What makes you think I will trust you?”

“Because I can give you this.”, the lion-woman took out a melting substance contained in a pot. “If you consume this, you’ll become even more powerful than you were before. So, ‘Don Armage’, do we have a deal?”

Don Armage huffed. “I suppose I can do to increase my power. I’ll accept your offer.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Hibiki tended to the wounded Takuto, while Kamijo placed a call to the old man. “ _The thing we’ve been worried about has proved true, Takuto has the power of Kuroki_ ( **note: intended to be written with the kana for “Qi”** ) _in him. It was used by some creature calling itself ‘Don Armage’.”_

“This is bad.”, the old man stated. “In the wrong hands, Kuroki can lead to the destruction of an entire civilisation. I’ll send Kijuuki to your location as soon as I can.”

The two were unaware that Wataru was listening in. “So that old man took in Takuto-san to be sure if he had the power of this ‘kuroki’. This must be what Voldos is after on Earth.”, he said to himself.

“Talking to yourself is the first sign of madness.” Wataru turned around to see Tsurugi standing behind him. “I assume you’ve been having some doubts about this old man who scouted you to be a saviour.”

“You’re correct.”, Wataru stated. “Recently, I found out that the old man might not be entirely trustworthy. He had others battle our enemies before us and people got hurt in the process. One of those warriors that proceeded us is now our enemies’ leader and part of me thinks ‘What if she’s right? What if the old man and his followers aren’t doing this for a good cause?’. It caused me to mess up earlier and because of that, we’re all here.”

“My word, that is quite an internal struggle.”, Tsurugi commented. “I’ll admit, I am not the best person to talk about concerning personal problems. In fact, I’ve been in the position of putting my trust in someone I shouldn’t.” He thought of his former ally Quervo, who he had believed to be a friend, but was in fact the greatest enemy he ended up facing. “But I do know, sometimes your gut instinct can let you down when you fail to listen to it. I almost doomed the universe because I wouldn’t let the other Kyurangers be more than my shield.”

Wataru thought for a moment. “You’re right. _Thank you_ , Tsurugi-san.” He then went over to the others, where Takuto was beginning to recover. “Guys, I’m sorry. I should’ve taken the shot when Kamijo-san wanted me to. That failure was on me.”

“No, it was my fault.”, Hibiki insisted. “If I hadn’t been angry at you when I covered for you, I wouldn’t have hit Kamijo-san.”

Kamijo was next to apologise. “I should’ve been clearer. That would’ve prevented any of the problems that resulted in Epithmeus having to bail us out.”

“Well, we seem to have resolved that little problem.”, Takuto noted as he pulled himself up. “Now then. All that’s left to do is have our friend here enlighten us. Who is this ‘Don Armage’ and what does he want to do with our world?”

Tsurugi sat down to begin his explanation. “Don Armage is the personification of all the sorrow and despair in the universe. He thrives on despair and sorrow to become more powerful. He once conquered the whole of my universe, but I stopped him, with the help of other legendary saviours. However, it seems that Kuroki stuff the red one of you possesses, combined with some lingering remnants of him within me, were enough to bring him back to wreak havoc in this new world.”

“Oh, I’ll be doing more than that, Ohtori Tsurugi.” Everyone turned around to see Don Armage and Gelashi, flanked by an army of Indavers and Vordorons. Don Armage had now transformed into his ultimate form from his final battle with the Kyurangers, which sported a white armoured robe with a loincloth bearing the emblem of his organisation, Jark Matter, in addition to large white rings surrounding his head and adorning his back respectively. He wielded a pair of small blades, known as Armaswords. “I’ll restore my Jark Matter empire here, with a stronger hold than I ever held over your space.”

“My word.”, Tsurugi said with shock. “It took you years to get this kind of power before. How do you have it now?”

“I’ll answer that.”, Hibiki responded, pointing at Gelashi. “She did it. Gelashi can enhance emotions within people using her abilities. Don Armage must’ve seemed like an ideal choice for a target.”

“Indeed.”, Gelashi declared. “Don Armage-san’s _pride_ was particularly potent, fitting for one who once held control of a whole universe. And it was fitting that I found a suitably strong emotion here. After all, I was the one who gave the Shittoshishi-Onna’s Rock its name.”

The Qidengers were shocked to hear this. “Then… you’re the maiden from the legends?”

“I preferred to go by Kasumi.”, Gelashi then transformed into a young woman, dressed in a more traditional attire. She also adopted a more antiquated style of linguistics. “As your legends say, I was the most beautiful woman in all the land. Yet only one man ever loved me for who I was, rather than my physical appearance. And then he went to fight in a battle, a battle from which he never returned. I saw that without him, every other girl in the village was receiving the love I myself was not. And so I left the village behind, consumed by my envy.” She then transformed back into Gelashi. “That was when a man offered me the power to revenge myself on those in my village. Power I gladly accepted and turned on the fools living there.” She laughed at her own carnage.

Hibiki and Wataru both got angry at this. “You allowed your entire village to be destroyed… just for the sake of your own petty grudges?”, the former said angrily.

“That’s unforgivable.”, Wataru growled. “Everyone, let’s transform.”

The 4 Qidengers pulled out their JuuKeitais while Tsurugi summoned his own transformation item, the Houou Blade and Shield. Everyone too out their individual transformation items and inserted them into their devices.

**Shishi! Kame! Falcon! Jaguar!**

**Houou Kyutama!**

“Kijuu Henge!”

“ _Star Change_!”

In a flash, the 5 were transformed into their suits.

“QidenRed!”

“QidenBlack!”

“QidenPink!”

“QidenYellow!”

“Space Bu-star! Houou Soldier!”

“Kijuu Sentai Qidenger!”

Houou Soldier then stepped forward. “Bear witness. A legend is about to start!”

Neither Gelashi nor Don Armage were impressed. “Get them!”, both declared.

The 5 heroes began charging into the combined army of Indavers and Vordorons, with the swordsmen cutting down several enemies, and the two gunfighters shooting down the rest. Soon, QidenRed, QidenBlack and QidenPink took on Gelashi, while QidenYellow and Houou Soldier fought against Don Armage.

* * *

Gelashi blocked Pink’s shots, before matching matching the other two’s swords and slashing the three down. “None of you can hope to match me.” She took out two balls of negative energy. “Lets see what happened when I combine the anger and lust I extracted from my Kanjin with my own envy.” She consumed the energy, being subsumed with the energy and growing to a giant size, that now had armour on the left arm bearing the symbol for wrath and on the right leg bearing the symbol for lust. Her chest now bore the symbol for envy. “Behold my new power.”, she declared, her voice now much deeper.

“We need to stop her.”, Red stated, pulling out his JuuKeitai. “KijuuOh, launch!”

KijuuOh appeared in its Tate formation and began fighting off their enemy, to no avail. Gelashi managed to overpower them handily.

* * *

Across the ground, Yellow and Houou Soldier were fighting Don Armage. “You fools, you should realise my new power is beyond your abilities.”, he declared as he delivered a slash with his Armaswords which knocked the two back with an explosion. “I’d suggest you begin to despair, knowing you were beaten by the strongest being in the universe.”

“We won’t give up.”, Houou Soldier stated. “Not until the universe is free of people like you.”

Yellow pointed at Armage. “Those heartless people who take the Galaxy into their hands and make the inhabitants cry, that won’t be allowed. There will always be people who stand up to take it back. Those who will take the Galaxy back.” Suddenly, energy from the two warriors came together, forming into a small coin-like object. Yellow took it into his hand, seeing that it had the same emblem as Houou Soldier’s suit. “It’s a… Kyuranger Soul Chip?”, he said with shock.

“Alright, lucky.”, Houou Soldier stated, to his comrades bemusement. “Sorry, something a friend said in situations like this. Anyway, let’s end this.” He inserted his Blade into his Shield as Yellow inserted the new Soul Chip into his Kijuu Buster.

**Galaxy!**

**Qiden Full Charge! Kyu!**

“Qiden _Star Crash_!”, Yellow declared as a star field effect surrounded him, before he fired at Don Armage.

Don Armage tried to defend, but found the energy to be more than he could handle, barely holding it back. “This power, It’s… too much.” His Armaswords were shattered, as he was reverted to his regular form. “You cur.”

“Tsurugi-san, now. He’ll regain his new power if we don’t destroy him now.”, Yellow called out.

“On it.”, Houou Soldier pulled his Blade, now charged with energy, from his shield. “ _Phoenix End_!” He delivered a series of slashes to his old enemy, critically damaging him.

“Even with my new power… I was defeated.”, Don Armage cried out as he collapsed, exploding.

“The legend starts now.”, Houou Soldier reverted to Tsurugi. “The legend of the Qidengers.”

* * *

His negative energy floated upwards to Gelashi, who used it to form a claw at the end of her arm, bearing the symbol for pride. “Thank you, Don Armage-san. Your strong greed has helped increase my own strength.” She used the claw to tear the shield off KijuuOh, before knocking it down.

“We’re sitting ducks.”, Black noted. “We need to power up.”

As if on cue, Kijuuki appeared, firing its lasers on Gelashi, who was caught off guard. “Looks like Oji-san pulled through.”, Red noted. “Oi, Wataru. Care to join us up here?”

“You know it.”, Yellow pulled out his JuuKeitai and began dialling.

**Summon Kijuuguar!**

Yellow’s own Kijuu appeared and launched itself at Gelashi, biting down on her unprotected arm. “Get back, you mangy kitty cat.”, she declared as she threw the robot to the ground.

“Let’s link up.”, Pink urged.

**Lion! Tortoise! Falcon! Swordfish! Jaguar! Complete Formation!**

“Kanzen KijuuOh, linkup complete.”, the 4 declared, as they piloted their fully powered robot. This time, the fight was a lot more evenly matched, with both sides managing to block and land hits on each other. “Let’s finish this.”

“Right.” Red began charging the sword with energy. “KijuuOh, _Final End_!” KijuuOh charged its sword with energy, before bringing it down on Gelashi…

Who caught the blade. “You really are impressive, Qidengers.”, Gelashi stated as she noted her armour beginning to spark. “However, I think I’ll cut this short for today, since my negative energy is weakening after a battle this long. When I gather all 7 types of negative energy I need, then we’ll settle this.” She then teleported out.

“Well, that was certainly ominous,”, Yellow noted.

“We’ll get her next time.”, Pink said in response. “I’ll make sure of it.”

* * *

Back at the Voldos Fortress, Gelashi, back in her original form, was meeting with Moboroshina once more, to apologise. “My apologies, my Queen. I ran away to preserve my energies instead of staying and finishing off the Qidengers. I accept any punishment you wish to deliver.”

“Your punishment…” Moboroshina raised her hand “is not necessary. Compared to the lack of success the other two went through in their task of choice, you came close to actually winning. Plus you’ve discovered a source of Kuroki, which will be very beneficial to our success. As such, I will overlook all of your solo undertakings. For now.”

“Thank you, Queen Moboroshina.”, Gelashi bowed gratefully and left the room. “Know that I will always be as loyal to you as your lapdog Oomikaoo.”

As soon as Gelashi left, Moboroshina began talking to herself. “Kuroki, the vey essence of the Ultimate when used by a dark soul. QidenRed is the first real hint to the location of the Ultimate. If I can bring his power over to our side, I can begin to undo the harm the old man caused.”

* * *

Back in Kyushu, the 4 Qidengers had gone to Aso Town to relax. “It’s a shame Tsurugi-san couldn’t stick around.”, Takuto lamented. “I thought he’d enjoy a little break.”

“He said that the Space Federation couldn’t hold up without him.”, Wataru said in response to this. “Plus, he didn’t know how long the distortion in space would stay open, so that cut into the time he had with us.”

Hibiki smiled. “At least it’s reassuring to know that there are heroes out there, saving the people from despair, just like us.”

“They have their own legends.”, Kamijo stated. “And who knows? Maybe one day, we’ll be legends.” The 4 then made their way to the hot springs, taking a rest from their weary battle.

* * *

_While the other Qidengers are in Kyushu, Mio is tasked with protecting Tokyo and dealing with the accusations of Koga Konzern’s supporters. Things get worse when Calam and Megaro hijack Epithmeus, sending it on a rampage. Can Mio do anything to defend the city. Next time, enjoy “He’s Here! Birth of the New Generation Warrior!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the first of many for the series, this chapter is a shout-out to someone I follow on Twitter. This one is dedicated to ProtoDubs, who I’ve seen talking about this week’s guest character a few times (And if he ever reads this, yes, I know your favourite is Shinkenger, but I planned this fic before I watched Shinkenger, so I didn’t trust myself enough to do any of them justice). 
> 
> In lieu of creating a new monster for this chapter, I decided to bring back Don Armage as the villain for this week. But, I’m avoiding making this episode filler by having Gelashi (who isn’t planned to play any significant role in the next chapter) use him to advance her plans. 
> 
> The other half of this story, focusing on Mio and the other two Generals, will be next week’s episode.


	9. He’s Here! Birth of the New Generation Warrior!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mio is left alone to protect Tokyo and deal with the criticisms of Koga Konzern’s clients. Things turn south when Calam and Megaro hijack Epithmeus, but someone new appears at a crucial moment.

_In the last episode, divisions between 4 of the Qidengers caused them to lose focus during a battle, allowing for the Koga Konzern’s creation Epithmeus, created from parts of two defeated enemies, to destroy the enemy. In order to resolve these differences, Takuto, Kamijo, Hibiki and Wataru are sent to work on their relationship, leaving Mio alone to defend against Voldos. And speaking of Voldos…_

* * *

Calam and Megaro were looking in on a news broadcast, covering the appearance of Epithmeus. _“This is exclusive footage of Koga Konzern’s latest creation Epithmeus, which proved effective in the destruction of the latest monster to attack our country. We spoke with the CEO, Koga Tetsuya, about his latest creation.”_

Calam fumed against this. “Two soldiers we put our pride as servants of Voldos onto the backs of… and these damn humans turn them both into… that thing.” He smashed several vials with his sword. “It’s an outrage!”

“Yes, but I do have a solution.”, Megaro posited. “He’s saying that Epithmeus could be dangerous in the wrong hands, namely ours. If we could take control of it, then we’d be able to show those humans not to cross us.”

Calam stopped destroying the laboratory and stood still, thinking about it. “And if we can use that level of firepower for ourselves, the we can destroy the Qidengers once and for all.” And maybe I can get rid of Moboroshina while I’m at it, he thought.

* * *

At the Otonaru household, Miro sat and watched as Takuto packed for his trip. “I wish I didn’t have to do this.”, he said. “It’s all Hibiki’s fault for shooting Kamijo-san.”

“Now now, Big Bro.”, Mio interjected. “It’s that kind of blaming that required you to go on this retreat. If you want it to end, you need to be quicker to let go of that unhealthy attitude.”

Takuto sighed. “You know what, Little Sis? When you’ve got a point, you’ve got a point. And remember, with the four of us gone, you’re in charge of protecting the city and proving that Koga’s science project isn’t needed.”

“I’ll do my best.”, Mio saluted.

* * *

The next day, as Mio was at the airport, seeing off the 4 Qidengers as their plane took off. “Well, I guess it’s up to me. No pressure then.”, she said to herself. Her face became confident. “I have to be strong. Never give up.”

As she was psyching herself, Mio saw a mysterious woman in a white robe, her face completely covered, appeared before her. “Do you have the courage to do what is necessary?”, the woman asked. Her voice was distorted to the point of being unrecognisable.

“I… what?”, Mio was confused by this woman.

“The time is coming when you will have to make a tough choice. Before that time comes, you must unleash the power within you.” The woman then walked away in one direction, before seemingly vanishing into thin air. Mio then took the opportunity to catch what was on the news channel.

“ _Later today, Koga Tetsuya of Koga Konzern will be holding a conference to fully introduce the Epithmeus project to the public. Several prominent anti-Qidenger speakers are expected to be there to ask questions about it fitting their standards.”_

“And QidenBlue will be there to object to all their points.”, Mio thought as she walked off.

* * *

Four hours later, the conference began in earnest, with Koga Tetsuya stepping up to the podium. “Friends, I know you all have past bad experience with Japan’s resident heroes. Which is why I’m here to assure you that Epithmeus will not fall into your grievances.” He clicked his fingers, signalling for his suited henchmen to walk into the room, operating Epithmeus by remote control for the whole crowd to see. A target appeared at the back of the stage, with Koga standing aside so that Epithmeus could stand at a position where the target was in range without obscuring anything. The cybernetic organism then aimed the cannon modified from Gatleander’s at the target, firing at it with enough force to tear it apart utterly. “As you can see, the Gamma Sterilium Cannon we perfected from the reversed engineered technology can annihilate a target utterly, leaving nothing behind. But unfortunately, it loses power after one shot and needs to be recharged using our supplies.”

“And what happens when you run out of those supplies?” QidenBlue made her appearance, having asked her question. “Or worse, if Voldos manages to get their hands on this technology and turn it against you?” Instead of getting people murmuring, she was promptly booed by the crowd, who mercifully, had not brought objects to throw at her.

“It appears that they consider you the bigger issue here, my unwelcome friend.”, Koga said mockingly. “Perhaps you’d like to hear just exactly why some of these people have issues with other Super Sentai like yours.”

“My Doctor ran out on my transplant while a Sentai group was fighting. If it hadn’t been for another doctor there on standby, I’d have died on that operating table. By the time she came back, it was too late and I wasn’t going to trust someone like her with this or any further urgent matters.”, one man stated.

During a school trip, our group was attacked by robots.”, one woman stated. “When we tried calling out to the nearby heroes for help, only one of them answered our cries. As a result, some of my friends got hurt and my teacher got killed.”

“The Ohrangers claimed they’d destroyed a machine-beast, yet it managed to come back in the body of the local officer.”, another man, slightly plumper, yelled. “I was almost turned into a science experiment, before the Ohrangers turned up. But if they’d just done their job and killed that thing beforehand, I wouldn’t have suffered through that ordeal.”

“I think we’ve heard enough.”, Koga stated. “After all, I don’t want this to degenerate into violence.” He went over to QidenBlue and patted her on he back, seemingly condescendingly. “You can see you’ve lost this argument, missy. How about you just run along now and allow us to continue our discussion.”

As an annoyed QidenBlue leapt out of the room, no longer caring about this crowd, Dimayta, disguised as an onlooker, released a small, fly-like robot that latched onto the Epithmeus body. She then turned and left.

* * *

Later on, at the mansion, the old man and Rin watched a recording of the event on the evening news. “Well, that certainly could’ve gone better.”, Rin noted.

“Yes, a lot better.”, the old man added solemnly. “Sadly, that crowd seems too dead set on their ways to accept the word of one Qidenger. If only I knew where the KijuuSlasher was.”

* * *

The next day, Mio left her house and walked to school. But on the way, she was accosted by a man in a suit. “Hello there, Otonaru Mio. Or should I say, QidenBlue?”, the man said menacingly.

Mio tried to deflect suspicion, concerned that this man had found out her identity. “I think you’ve got the wrong person. I’m just a normal high school girl in my second year. Just because my school blazer is blue, doesn’t mean I’m a blue superhero.”

“Don’t play dumb with me.”, the man said. “President Koga placed a tracking device on you when you were at the expo. It was then merely a matter of following you back to your house, and then using logic to determine which of the occupants best matched her physical profile and vocal patterns. You were the only one who fit the bill, Otonaru-shi.” He then approached her more closely. “A little word of advice. You’d better stay as far away from our business as possible, or we’ll make it very difficult for you and your friends to perform their heroics. President Koga is very dependent on those anti-Sentai fools to increase his business and we can’t have your interference get in the way of them paying us good money.”

“Help! Help!”, Mio called out. “This man’s trying to assault me.”

A man, of about the same age as Takuto, came running from around the corner. “Hey, mister. Are you someone who gets a kick out of having their way with young girls?”, he demanded.

“No, no.”, the man said defensively. “I was just leaving.” He turned around and walked off, but not without shooting Mio a look that said “That was a dirty trick, little girl.”

“Are you okay?”, the young man asked Mio. Taking a look at him reminded her strongly of her brother, for reasons she couldn’t understand. “Did that man hurt you in anyway?”

“No, it’s okay.”, Mio said in response. “He didn’t do anything to me really. I just wanted to get him out of my face. He was one of Koga Tetsuya’s cronies, bullying me for something I said disparaging his anti-Qidenger clientele.”

“Not everyone’s like them.”, the man stated. “With guys like Kyosuke Ryuota and Koga Tetsuya riling them up, a handful of people with minor grievances think they have the right to hurl abuse at people who have done nothing to personally offend them. But once Koga slips up like Kyosuke did, they’ll lose their voice and shut up.” He then turned and walked off. “By the way, my name’s Tanjo Takumi. Look it up sometime.”

Mio nodded in confusion at this, before hearing her JuuKeitai ring. “Hello”, she answered the phone.

“Mio, Voldos has appeared in a plaza, not far from where you are now.”, the old man’s voice came from the other end. “If we want to discredit those fools, this is our chance.”

“On it.”, Mio hung up and inserted her Soul Chip, running to the site of the next battle. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Kajiki! Doubutsu Gashin!**

* * *

At the site, Calam and Megaro were smashing up the area and terrorising civilians using their weapons. They were flanked by a squad of Vordorons, who were knocking garbage cans over, breaking windows and scaring people away. “Foolish humans.”, Calam said, trying his best to act convincingly. “Your world will soon belong to us Voldos, the superior lifeforms.”

“Those of you who survive should prepare for enslavement.”, Megaro was marginally more convincing, but not by much.

The representatives from Koga Konzern appeared with Epithmeus. “I don’t think so.”, the operator stated. “Prepare to meet your doom.”

“Funny, I was thinking the same thing.”, Megaro commented, holding up a button. “Cross transceiver, activate!” He pressed the button.

Epithmeus then stepped over to the two Generals and then turned around, aiming its weapons at its original controllers. “It’s no good.”, the operator said as he mashed buttons on the controller, to no avail. “It’s not responding to any input commands.”

“That’s the beauty of this Guy’s little device.”, Calam said, indicating Megaro. “We planted a bug in your little project that when activated, would cause the thing to rampage and destroy the human world. We’re taking back what you stole from us and turning it back on you.” Epithmeus began charging its Gamma Sterilium Cannon and aimed at the team, firing.

QidenBlue appeared, jumping into the path of the blast, deflecting it with her Kijuu Caliber. She held on for a few seconds, before falling under the pressure. Luckily, the blast had lost more of its power, resulting in barely any of those who hadn’t moved out of the way being hurt. One of the technicians, one who wasn’t as indoctrinated to Koga’s mindset, not that of the Anti-Sentai crowd, was shocked. “You saved us, even after we were so harsh on you and your friends. Why?”, he asked.

“A real hero doesn’t save people for glory.”, QidenBlue stated, pulling herself up. “They don’t save people because they haven’t said or done anything mean to them. They save them because it’s the heroic thing to do. Your people may have been mean to me, but I won’t prove them wrong by letting them die. I’ll prove it by showing them the better way. Saving people because I have to, not because I want to.” She then paused, pondering on whether this was what the mystery woman had been talking about yesterday.

“A touching sentiment.”, Calam said mockingly. “But a shame it’ll be your last.”

“I doubt it.”, Blue responded, brandishing her Kijuu Caliber and beginning to cut through some of the Vordorons. “That thing can only fire off one shot before it requires recharging. And unless you have access to an easy supply of Gamma Sterilium…”

“As a matter of fact, we do.”, Megaro took out a green crystal and inserted it into the cannon’s fuel holder, replacing the burnt out crystal. “The humans may have figured out how to synthesise the crystals, but it occurs naturally in the Voldos dimension. You’re doomed, QidenBlue. You’re all alone and hopelessly outmatched.”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Everyone turned to the newcomer. “It was Tanjo Takumi, the man who had helped Mio earlier. “I’m also going to be your opponent.” He pulled something out of his pocket, which everyone who had seen it recognised.

“The KijuuSlasher.”, Blue said with shock. “Why do you have that?”

“You cur!”, Calam hissed. “Who are you?”

“Me?”, Takumi punched back a few Vordorons before putting the KijuuSlasher onto his fist and taking out the Tiger Soul Chip that came with it. “I’m the latest threat to your attempts to take over the Earth. As soon as I… Kijuu Change!” He then inserted the Soul Chip into its slot, causing the grip to close as the device announced ‘ **Denchaku! Doubutsu no Kiba!** ’ As quickly as the light surrounded him, it dispersed to reveal his suit. It resembled a tiger, with the suit itself sporting a more armoured chest plate and shins, being white with red highlights, the ‘Q’ on his chest being much smaller, only covering part of his chest. “The Fast, Ferocious Warrior! QidenTora!”

“Qiden… Tora…”, Blue said with shock.

Calam was only enraged. “Another Qidenger? Well, it won’t matter once Epithmeus is done with you. Gamma Sterilium Cannon, fire!”

Before it could fire, Tora pulled out his Kijuu Caliber, pushing it into the barrel of the weapon. “That’s not going to happen.”, he commented. As the Cannon tried to fire, it found itself blocked off and ended up exploding, sending the cyborg terror backwards. “And that puts paid to your Cannon.”

“Why you!”, Calam growled. “Vordorons, attack!”

As the grunts surrounded QidenTora, he merely smirked beneath his helmet. “You think this will slow me down?” He grabbed his Kijuu Caliber and used it to slash at some of the Vordorons, with those that weren’t hit with his weapon being kicked backwards. Megaro tried to make an exit, but Tora wasn’t letting him move. He clicked on his KijuuSlasher several times, activating the same feature that Drillsame had activated during his brief use of the device.

**Beast Slash!**

“Oh dear.”, Megaro got out before the blade went through his face and part of his torso, knocking him to the ground. “Megaro!”, Calam called out, running to retrieve his fallen comrade. “Mark my words, tiger guy. I’ll get you next time we meet.” He and Megaro then teleported out, leaving the damaged and rampaging Epithmeus as the only active threat.

“This shouldn’t take long.”, Tora commented. “Blue, when I give the word, I want you to shoot with your Powered Shot. Can you do that.” He then took his Caliber and attached it to his KijuuSlasher.

**Juu Sai!**

Mio was confused, but decided to go with it. “I can do that.” She took out her Kajiki Soul Chip and inserted it into her Kijuu Buster, after she had assembled it, of course.

**Qiden Full Charge! Kajiki!**

“Now it’s my turn.” Takumi took out a Soul Chip with a stylised G on it, inserting it into his new formation.

**Go-Onger! Charge Up!**

“Let’s finish this at Mach speed.”, Tora stated as he ran forward, the ground beneath him turning into a road, that pushed him forward. “Kousoku Jujizan!” (High Speed Cross Slash!)

**Juu Sai Kiba Geki!**

QidenTora delivered two slashes to Epithmeus, one vertical, the other horizontal, before QidenBlue pointed her weapon at it. “Qiden Super Final!” The blast hit the Frankenstein-esque creature, rendering it no more. “Your plan worked really well, Takumi-san.” She looked around, to see that she was the only one there. “Takumi-san?”, she asked, confused.

* * *

Elsewhere, Koga Tetsuya was wanted with questions from reporters as he walked to his office. “President Koga, any comment on Epithmeus’s failure? “Mister Koga, how do you intend to recover from this fiasco?” “President Koga, is it true that one of your men was detained by the police for trying to assault a high school girl.”

As Koga tried to worm out of these questions, Takumi looked on from the side. “Koga Tetsuya. He could be a danger to the Qidengers and their mission. I should deal with him.”

* * *

_As the 4 Qidengers return from their retreat, the newly United team tries to find out what they can about their new ally. Takumi infiltrates Koga Konzern, where he discovers something terrible. Calam and Megaro strike back with a new plan. Next time, Revealed! Kijuu Tiger Appears! Look forward to it._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to do a Mio focused episode for the debut of QidenTora. But given my issues with staying focused on one of the heroes at one time, I wrote them all out of this chapter in the last one. 
> 
> Yes, there will be an explanation as to how QidenTora has the Go-Onger Chip in the next episode, which will be another shout out to someone. The identity of the mysterious woman approaching Mio on the other hand won’t be covered for some time. 
> 
> Epithmeus’ name is meant to be ironic, when you consider that the mythological Epithmeus fell asleep on the job, allowing Pandora to steal and open her eponymous box.


	10. Revealed! Kijuu Tiger Appears!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mio informs the other Qidengers of the new QidenTora, but any attempt to find out more about him is put on hold by the appearance of 3 monsters at once.

_In the last chapter, Otonaru Mio was the only Qidenger left behind in Tokyo while the others left to train. She ended up catching the attention of the Koga Konzern, who discovered her identity and tried to blackmail him. When Koga’s secret weapon Epithmeus was hijacked by Voldos. The. The mysterious new warrior QidenTora appeared to defeat it. Who is he? What is he after?_

“What’re you talking about?”, Mio asked. “He introduced himself as Tanjo Takumi and we met him two episodes beforehand. He said he was going to investigate Koga Konzern to make sure they weren’t a threat. I personally hope they aren’t, I don’t want another Basco situation.”

_I’m trying to establish a mood here. I’m the one telling this story and making sure it’s up to snuff. I cna jsut as eesly tun thi sinto a stroy wih gramer on par with Mi Imotal. Or I could make it like that guy on fanfiction.net that makes his stories dialogue only with no_

**Mio: Ok, I’m sorry for killing the mood. Can we forgive and forget and move onto the main plot?**

_Fine, fine. We now join Koga Konzern President Koga Tetsuya in his office. He is pondering on the events that have recently occurred._

* * *

Koga reviewed footage of the recent battle, in which QidenTora had appeared and used similar abilities to those of the Engine Sentai Go-Onger to defeat his Epithmeus. He then reviewed footage of other recent appearances by the Qidenger in which they had used the abilities of Choudenshi Bioman and Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters. “The Qidengers are taking their notes from the previous groups of heroes, obviously.” He noted. “Not only will this galvanise their supporters against those fools I’m being paid good money to speak up for, but the fact Epithmeus was turned against us will really damage my company’s reputation.”

His secretary, an attractive young woman of about 30, dressed in a business suit, poked her head in the door. “President Koga, Professor Sakawa has arrived to speak to you.”, she stated.

“Show her in.”, Koga instructed, closing down his tab and turning off his computer screen. The woman he had been expecting, a young-looking woman in glasses and a labcoat, her hair in a ponytail, walked in and sat down. “You look younger than I expected, Miss Sakawa.”, he noted.

“I was a fast learner.”, was the woman’s answer to this. “Now then, I hear you have something that requires my services?”

“Yes.”, Koga said in response. “Sakawa Misa, an up and coming expert on studying exobiology and exo-technology. The Epithmeus project was made by cloning and reverse-engineering respectively, the remains of two creatures that attacked the Earth a few weeks ago. Now that Epithmeus has been destroyed…”

“…You plan to use the remains of the originals to construct a giant copy of the Epithmeus project.”, Sakawa Misa finished for him. “Don’t worry, I’m all too happy to work on your project.” She reached out her hand to shake, which was reciprocated.

“Welcome aboard, Sakawa-kun. If you’ll proceed to the hangar in this schematic, you can begin work soon.” Koga handed his newest employee said schematics and bid her leave.

When the woman left the room, she pulled a communicator out of her jacket pocket and spoke into it. “I’m in. The old fool bought my story hook, line and sinker. Now we can access the remains of VolKraken and Gatleander at will.”

* * *

Nearby, a few feet away from Koga’s main office, Takumi looked up at the building. “Koga Tetsuya.”, he mused. “You could be a real threat to the Qidengers with your knowledge and lack of scruples. Too bad for you that people like me are here to stop people like you.” He then took out the Go-Onger Soul Chip. “After all, why else would Earth’s heroes give me something like this.” He thought back to how he received the item as a man in a suit came after him.

* * *

 **It was twelve years ago. He had been caught up in an attack by a group of robots that looked cobbled together from junk (They were, but Takumi was too young and out of the loop to realise this.) They were led by a different robot that looked like a car crusher** ( _A/N: Think of Boring Banki from GP 08_ ). **“Crush these puny humans down ‘til they can’t fight back bureru.”, the machine stated.**

**Before the machine creature could reach a young Takumi, it was shot back, as 5 voices called out “Go-On Cannonball!” The 5 Go-Ongers, those heroes that Takumi had heard people talking about lately. They then began battling the robots with their weapons.**

**All except for Go-On Red, who turned to him and sat down at his level. “Hey, you. I can’t say why, but some,thing”s telling me I should give you this.” He presented the young boy with a small medal-shaped item, bearing the Go-Onger logo. “Sorry I can’t stay, but I’ve got something to do.” The hero then stood up and resumed the fight. Takumi then walked away, in awe at his new acquisition.**

* * *

Back in the present, a now-stripped-to-his-underwear guard lay on the floor, while Takumi put on his suit and walked into the building. “I was chosen to be a hero for a reason. And I’ll keep going until I find out what it is.”

* * *

At the airport, Mio greeted the 4 Qidengers returning from their retreat. “So, how was Kyushu?”, Mio asked. “Did any of you bring anything back for me?”

“Well, we did come away with this.”, Wataru held up the Kyuranger Soul Chip. “And for you, we got this.” Hibiki presented Mio with a commemorative keychain for the area they had visited in Kyushu.

“What about you, Nee-chan?”, Takuto asked. “What’s been happening while we were away?”

Mio smiled nervously. “Well, I’ve got good news and weird news. The good news is, we won’t have to deal with Epithmeus anymore, Voldos took control of it and it was destroyed.”

The other Qidengers celebrated this, especially Kamijo. “Perhaps this should teach the Koga Konzern not to put all their eggs in one basket. How did you handle it Mio?”, he asked.

“It wasn’t me.”, was Mio’s response. Everyone took note of how unusually serious she was, drawing their attention. “It was someone calling himself Tanjo Takumi.”

Hibiki and Wataru were even more surprised to hear this. “Tanjo Takumi?”, the former noted. “The man who was living with Hiroshi-kun? He’s a Qidenger?”

“He had that KijuuSlasher we lost a while back.”, Mio stated. “And the Tiger Soul Chip that came with it.”

“And he wasn’t showing any signs of mutating into a monster, like Kyosuke?”, Wataru pondered. “Interesting. We should try and find him to bring him into our confidence.”

“Good idea.”, Takuto nodded. “Let’s go.”

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, Calam and Megaro prepared to set off. “That annoying QidenTora may have stopped us last time, but he won’t this time.” Calam stabbed his sword into the ground. “I’ll make sure of it.”

“Oh will you?” Calam turned to see Moboroshina and Gelashi standing at the entrance. “Need I remind you how badly he beat you down in your last encounter?”, the former noted. “I barely trust you to lead a parade.”

“And yet, you’re still letting me carry out my plan.”, Calam responded cockily. “Probably because you can still trust me to carry it out.”

“On the contrary.”, Gelashi countered. “You’re only being allowed to go through with this plan because I’ve been assigned to take charge of it. No doubt as a response to my near success in Kyushu, I assume?”

“You assume correctly.”, Moboroshina nodded. “I would normally put Oomikaoo in the position, but he’s vanished somewhere. But be warned. If you fail as well, I won’t hesitate to inflict the same punishment on you as I will to the the others.” She turned around and left the three Generals to themselves.

“Oh sure. She thinks she can just go ahead and force the three of us to work together for her benefit.”, Megaro said in an unusually agrressive tone, which shocked the other two. “Well, I’m not going out in the field again. I don’t want that QidenTora guy damaging me again.”

“That sounds good.”, Gelashi stated. “Can I still depend on you to fire the revival beam?” This left both Megaro and Calam shocked. “That’s right, I looked over the outline of your plan. Create a giant Epithmeus under our control and then use a weaker version of the revival beams we use on our monsters to bring back VolKraken and Gatleander from the leftover limbs. An ingenious plan, if I must say so.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll operate the growth beam.”, Megaro responded dismissively. “Just give me the signal and I’ll fire.”

“Good.”, Gelashi nodded. “Though I will be making some changes to the plan.”

* * *

In the hangar of one of Koga Konzern’s warehouses, the woman calling herself Sakawa Misa was directing a team of workers in assembling a new Epithmeus from the remains of the original monsters. The operator working the crane banged one of the arms into the side of the giant body, infuriating “Sakawa”. “Be careful.”, she snapped. “These items are fragile. Do you want to accomplish what the Qidengers couldn’t?”

“I’m sorry.”, the operator radioed as he corrected his blunder and placed the arm in its intended area. “Construction complete, ma’am.”

“Good work people.”, the supervisor said to all the people who gave a sigh of relief. “Now we need to turn it over to the main department in charge of powering the Cannon.”

“Oh don’t worry.”, “Sakawa” said with a devious grin. “I can handle that myself. As for you,” she threw off her disguise, revealing Dimayta underneath “I’ve got a metamorphosis coming up and need life energy to fuel it.” She transformed into her monster form and unleashed tendrils from her mouth, grabbing everyone and reducing them to nothing but clothes. Her skin began to form cracks. “Oh yes, I’ve begun to change.” She then reverted to her human form and pulled out her communicator again. “The humans have been taken care of and the giant Epithmeus has been secured. You can come in now.”

Calam and Gelashi warped into the room as a man in a suit poked his head in through the door and placed himself against the wall. “Those foolish humans.”, Calam laughed. “They built this thing under my plans and played right into my hand.”

“Under ‘your’ supervision?”, Dimayta said with some annoyance. “You’re lucky I haven’t metamorphosed yet, or…”, she thought before responding to her superior. “And the remains are over there, waiting for the revival beams to resurrect them.”

“But first, I’d like to add my own touch to this ‘Epithmeus’.”, Gelashi pulled out a small sample of Gamma Sterilium. “All I need to do to bring my latest creation to life is have this mixed with a little personal touch.” She took out a ball of the same energy she used to create her demonic gelato and threw it into the mouth of Epithmeus, after merging it with the ore. “Now, Epithmeus. Revive with the powerful grudges of two defeated warriors of Voldos, use their anger to evolve and become a new creature of destruction!”

The eyes of the giant monstrosity burst into life, with it’s skin becoming purple, it’s cybernetics becoming grey and a large crystal emerging from its back. It then proceeded to break free from its scaffolding and rampage, destroying the building. “Now we just need to revive the two monsters that created it from the remains.”, Dimayta pointed out. She spoke into her communicator. “Megaro, fire the revival beam.”

* * *

In his lab, Megaro went over to the machine. “‘Fire the revival beam’, she says. Well if the lady wants it, the lady gets it.” He pulled the lever up and down twice, firing two beams at the specified location.

* * *

Giant copies of VolKraken and Gatleander were formed from their remnants. “Now go!”, Gelashi declared. “Join your child in destroying the humans who treated your body poorly. And the Qidengers who defeated you before.” The two monsters roared as they emerged from the building and began causing more destruction.

“That’s far enough, Voldos.” All three turned to the source of the voice. It was the man in the suit, who promptly took off his glasses to reveal Takumi. “I’m here to stop your plans.”

“You?”, Gelashi questioned. She had never seen him before. “Who are you?” Calam realised she was making a mistake and tried to dissuade her, to no avail.”

“Me?”, Takumi asked as he took out his KijuuSlasher and held it in his right hand. “I’m the latest threat to your attempts to take over the Earth.” He took out his Tiger Soul Chip and inserted it into his KijuuSlasher. “Kijuu Change!” He pressed a trigger, causing the grip to close onto his hand. **Denchaku! Doubutsu no Kiba**! In a flash, Takumi was transformed. “The Fast, Ferocious Warrior! QidenTora!”

Gelashi smirked at this. “So, you’re QidenTora, eh? This should be fun.” She brandished her claws and ran towards her new enemy, engaging him in battle.

* * *

Down on the streets, the main 5 Qidengers were shocked to see a familiar creature standing above them. “That’s the dragon from the first time we met each other.”, Wataru realised.

“I thought Takuto destroyed him?”, Kamijo said with confusion.

“That’s not the only familiar face we already beat.”, Takuto pointed out, as the revived Gatleander also towered overhead. “It’s that robot that unleashed the virus onto the city.” He took out his JuuKeitai and called the old man. “Oji-san, are you seeing this?”

“I am.”, came the response. “Everyone, transform. Now!”

“Okay.”, everyone said in unison. They took out their JuuKeitais and inserted their Soul Chips. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Shishi! Kame! Falcon! Kajiki! Jaguar! Doubutsu Gashin!**

After they were transformed, QidenRed activated the summoning function. “Hōhei Kijuu Gattai!”

**Lion! Tortoise! Falcon! Swordfish! Jaguar! Complete Formation!**

The 5 Kijuu appeared and merged into one. “Kanzen KijuuOh, linkup complete!” The robot went into battle, hitting both monsters with its sword. Gatleander proceeded to fire its weapons at the robot, which it blocked with its shield. KijuuPh then used its sword to block VolKraken’s claws and knock it into Gatleander, knocking both of them down.

“Let’s finish this.”, Yellow stated.

But before it could launch an attack, KijuuOh was blown backwards with a powerful energy shot, as the Kanjin Epithmeus stood before them, with its two progenitors rising from the ground to do battle. “Unforgivable! Destroy! Qidenger!”, the creature growled.

“That looks like the Epithmeus.”, Pink realised. “Mio-chan, you said it was destroyed.”

“It was.”, Blue answered. “But it looks different now. It’s got a crystal on his back. Who knows what it can do with it?” That question was soon answered when the Kanjin Epithmeus unleashed its cannon fire once more. Kanzen KijuuOh tried to block off the shot, only to find its shield insufficient to tank the shot. “The crystal is powering its Cannon.”, Blue realised. “Before, it could only fire one shot at a time.”

The three monsters proceeded to combine their beams, hitting KijuuOh with enough force to knock it into Kijuu Lion Warrior Mode and the 4 individual Kijuu. “We’re not done yet.”, Red stated as he charged at the monsters to continue fighting.

* * *

In the ruins of the hangar, QidenTora continued to fight Gelashi, blocking all of her hits with his Slasher Gauntlet and hitting her back with his Kijuu Caliber. “Oh screw this.”, Calam decided. “I’m getting in there.” He summoned his sword and ran into the battle.

“Oh no you don’t.”, Tora commented, spinning and delivering a kick to the General, before running forward to slash Dimayta back.

However, she vanished before he could land a hit. “As much fun as it would be to fight you, I’ve begun to metamorphose and need to rest up for a while. Until then.” Her voice echoed.

Tora initially seemed annoyed at this, but soon composed himself. “So, that only leaves you two for me to deal with.”, he said to Gelashi and Calam, taking out his Go-Onger Soul Chip. “I’ll finish you at mach speed.” He inserted the Go-Onger Chip into his Kijuu Caliber.

**Qiden Charge! Go-On!**

“Mach Jugekiha(Beast Break)!” QidenTora unleashed a slash that turned into an astral projection of a robot tiger, which slammed into the two Generals, knocking them back. When the dust settled, both were gone. “I guess I sent them running.”, he noted. He then turned and saw the mayhem in the city, with Kijuu Lion being savagely assaulted by all three enemies. “Time for me to get in there.”, he decided. He unfolded part of his gauntlet to reveal a set of 4 numbered buttons. He pressed number 1. “Now come, Kijuu Tiger!”

**Kijuu Tiger!**

A robotic tiger was projected from the KijuuSlasher, enlarging to a size comparable to the other Kijuu. The robot proceeded to charge towards the scene of the battle, guided by remote commands from QidenTora. “Alright, let’s go.”, he stated.

* * *

In the battle, just as Kijuu Lion was about to be taken down for the count, the three enemies were shot back. “What the?”, QidenRed asked as he saw this. Kijuu Lion stood up to see Kijuu Tiger running forward.

“Is that… a new Kijuu?”, Pink asked.

“It might be QidenTora’s.”, Yellow mused.

Kijuu Tiger leapt at Gatleander with massive force, damaging it to the point of destruction. “I’ve evened the playing field.”, the voice of QidenTora appeared over their communcator. “Now stand up and fight.”

“Okay.” As Kijuu Lion stood up, QidenTora pressed button number 2 on his gauntlet.

 **Tiger Fight!** The tiger robot stood upright on its front legs, with the hind legs folding backwards to form arms and the tiger head folding upwards to create a chest plate. The tail disconnected and flew into the arms as a gun, while a humanoid head emerged from the tiger head.

“Kijuu Tiger, Bujin Henkei complete!”

The 4 auxiliary Kijuu recombined with Kijuu Lion. Both robots stood against the two opponents, with KijuuOh going into battle with Gatleander, while Kijuu Tiger faced Epithmeus. Every movement, Tora made, the robot matched note for note. Finally, he provoked Epithmeus into using its Cannon, a move that required it to stand still and leave itself open. QidenTora pressed button 4 on his gauntlet.

**Tiger Stardust!**

“Stri-Buster!” QidenTora aimed at Epithmeus and fired, with Kijuu Tiger doing the same thing. The beam hit Epithmeus, vaporising it’s flesh and robotics and causing the crystal to shatter into several black-coloured frag,ents that fell to the ground. “Try to reconstruct something from that, Koga.”, he commented.

To the side, KijuuOh managed to knock Gatleander against the wall and prepared its finisher. “KijuuOh Final End!” The robot launched its sphere and kicked it at Gatleander, destroying it once more.

“Thanks for your help, QidenTora.”, Red radioed. “But there was no response and the new hero had disappeared with his Kijuu. “QidenTora?”

“Takumi-san.”, Blue thought. “Just what are you after?”

* * *

In his office, Koga reviewed footage of Takumi transforming into QidenTora. “As far as I’ve found, you don’t have any records.”, Koga stated. “But I’ve got this footage, and from it, your face, QidenTora. It will only be a matter of time before I find you and make you pay for ruining our operation.” He turned off his computer and picked up his phone, dialling a number.

* * *

In his dimension, Kagami was musing on the recent events. “So, old man. You’ve brought a new player to the game that you can’t control. How amusing.” He giggled at this. “I’m looking forward to seeing where this goes next.”

* * *

At the old man’s house, Rin the housekeeper called someone on her phone. “Yes, you’re sure you can come by soon? That’s good to hear, _darling_. I’m looking forward to seeing you soon.”

* * *

_The old man decides to allow Takumi to continue using the KijuuSlasher. However, Kamijo Ryosuke doesn’t approve of this, intending to find QidenTora and take back his transformation item. When Oomikaoo begins attacking holy men with a new Vorjuu, Kamijo and Takumi must work together. Look forward to “Ultimate Tag! Protect the Holy Men!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the second chapter to be dedicated to someone with the appearance of guest characters from a canonical Sentai show, in this case MarineDynamite (If I knew how to hyperlink that, I would) leading to the appearance of the Go-Ongers. Sorry their appearance is so short, but I’m considering giving one character from that show another appearance later on to clarify why Takumi was given the Soul Chip. The brief argument with the narrator, while not really based on any Sentai seasons, was my tip of the hat to Go-Onger’s well ‘hat’.
> 
> I should clarify that despite appearances, Takumi/QidenTora is an extra hero, as opposed to a sixth Ranger. I’m still working on the concept for my actual sixth (All I’ve got so far is TimeFire-esque, since someone pointed out QidenTora was Kibaranger-esque). So don’t expect him to join the team or contribute much. He’ll be spending much of his time investigating Koga.
> 
> EDIT: I also inadvertently deviated from my usual style key during Takumi’s flashback. I’m not going to fix it here, but I’ll return to the original key next time.


	11. Ultimate Tag! Protect the Holy Men!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kamijo doesn’t approve of Takumi’s continued use of the KijuuSlasher. But when Oomikaoo appears with a new plan, the two must work together to stop him.

At his mansion, the old man was talking with Kamijo about recent developments. “So, you are going to strip Tanjo Takumi of the KijuuSlasher, right?”, the latter asked.

The old man shook his head. “I don’t think so. He has done an exemplary job with the powers of QidenTora so far. Plus, he has proven to have a strong compatibility with the tiger, which would make it hard to find a replacement.”

“You can’t be serious, Oji-san.”, Kamijo exclaimed. “You’re going to let a rank amateur walk around with a device that isn’t even his?”

“I allow Takuto and the others to do the same.”, was the old man’s counter-argument. Kamijo, angry at hearing this, stormed out.

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, Oomikaoo walked back through the door. “Well, look who decided to show up after all this time?”, Calam sneered. “Where were you when QidenTora dismantled our operations? Huh?”

“Calam!”, the voice of Queen Moboroshina bellowed. “Know your place. Now then, our warrior. What took away so much of your attention recently?”

“I was trying to discover a way to restore my memories.”, Oomikaoo said in response. “And I found one. I merely need to gather the essence of 5 holy men and create a new Soul Chip from that, before infusing myself with its energy.”

Calam seemed to perk up when he heard this. “Well in that case, I think I have the perfect Vorjuu to carry out this job.” He slammed his sword into the ground. “ _Come on_ , VolGagoze!” A new Vorjuu, sporting a deformed face and wearing tattered clothing similar to that of a Shinto monk, entered the chamber, crouched on all fours. “This creature can detect pure souls and absorb their essence for sustenance.”

“Good.”, Oomikaoo nodded. “He’s perfect for my task.”

* * *

The next day, Takumi, still staying at the Miyashita household, woke up, looking at the morning newspaper. “‘Two Holy Men Attacked in Savage Assault Last Night’?”, he said in shock.

“Yes, it was really surprising.”, Mrs. Miyashita nodded. “Two people who’d done invaluable services in the Kanagawa Prefecture for their communities both attacked. Who’d do such a thing?”

“I might have a few ideas.”, Takumi thought. After finishing his breakfast, he headed out, making for Kanagawa.

* * *

And at Kanagawa, Takuto and Mio were at a wedding, as guests to the former’s cousin Taiga and her fiancé Gakuto. “It’s nice to be able to get some downtime.”, Mio said with exuberance.

“Indeed.”, Takuto nodded. “Cousin Taiga gets married and we can just watch, assured that nothing will happen.”

As if on cue, VolGagoze burst in through the roof, leaping at the priest while the couple were reading their vows. He knocked the man down and began sucking at his target. The other guests chose that moment to run away. But Takuto and Mio merely chose to pull out their JuuKeitais and transform. “Doubutsu Henge!”

As VolGagoze finished sucking part of the essence from his victim, he was shot back by QidenRed and QidenBlue. “Did you have to crash a wedding while we were here?”, Blue asked.

“I don’t think he knew about us being invited as guests.”, Red commented. “Too bad for him, because we’re about to finish him off.”

But before either of them could take a shot at the monster, they were knocked back by a sword slash. The one who had hit them was Oomikaoo. “I won’t let you interfere with my operation, Qidengers.”, he stated. “VolGagoze, go.” The monster nodded nervously and leapt out of the church. “Now then, I shall deal with you.” He charged towards the two heroes, proceeding to slash at them with his sword.

* * *

As VolGagoze leapt out onto the street, QidenTora was standing in front of him. “I guessed you would go after this one next.”, he stated, brandishing his Juu Sai. “I’m going to stop you here and now.”

He began running towards the monster, only to be blocked by Calam. “I’m not going to let you go without a rematch, QidenTora.”, Calam growled, brandishing his sword. “Come at me.”

“Very well then.”, QidenTora stated, preparing his Juu Sai. Then he saw a figure leap over his head. “What the?”

It was QidenBlack. “I’ll take care of Calam.”, he stated as he pulled out his Kijuu Caliber and slashed at the enemy general.

“Oh no, you don’t.”, Calam used his sword to zap Tora with lightning, before running forward and slashing at him, knocking him down.

“Okay, you asked for it.”, QidenTora growled angrily. He turned around and delivered a slash to Calam, before kicking him back. Black proceeded to slash and kick Calam back towards QidenTora, who proceeded to kick the general aside. QidenTora then turned around to confront VolGagoze, only to see nothing. “It’s gone.”

Black tutted at this. “Well well, looks like you’re not such a hotshot after all, if you let that thing get away.”

“Me?”, QidenTora responded with an angry tone. “I didn’t tell you to join me in a fight with Calam that HE requested be with me alone, you could’ve stopped that thing.” He then turned around and leapt away, thinking about his next course of action. “I’d better find a way to lure that thing into a trap.”

* * *

Inside the church, Oomikaoo’s next attack hit the two Qidengers with enough force to knock them out of their transformed state, though QidenBlue took the brunt of the hit. “Fools. You should realise that I am the strongest warrior in Voldos. You cannot defeat me.” He then got a good look at Mio’s face, causing a flash of recognition to appear in his mind. He quickly recovered. “I’ll let you live for now. I have other business to attend to.” He turned around and warped away.

“Wait…”, Mio wheezed as she reached out. She then saw that Takuto had fallen unconscious. “Big bro!”, she said in a panic, shaking him frantically. “Wake up. Big Bro!”

* * *

Later, at the mansion, the old man was admonishing Kamijo for his actions during the prior fight. “What were you thinking?”, he yelled.

“I thought… I should take care of Calam while QidenTora dealt with the Vorjuu.”, Kamijo tried to defend himself.

“Except that Calam and QidenTora were already fighting each other.”, Wataru pointed out. “You should’ve taken the opportunity to intercept the Vorjuu before it could continue its attack.”

“Instead, you chose to prove that QidenTora wasn’t worthy by fighting the same opponent as him, with the intention of ‘outdoing him’.”, the old man continued. “Your petty animosity allowed the Vorjuu to attack another victim in the interim.”

Kamijo realised his mistake, thanks to the chiding given to him. “I’m sorry. I won’t let it happen again.”

It was then that Mio and Hibiki came in. “How’s Takuto doing?”, Wataru asked.

“He should be fine, with a little rest.”, Hibiki answered.

“Never mind that now.”, Mio said. “What matters for now is that we stop this Vorjuu before he can do anymore damage.”

Wataru stepped forward. “But how are we supposed to do that? We have no leads on where he’s going to strike next.”

As if on cue, a call came in on Hibiki’s JuuKeitai. It was Takumi. “ _Qidengers, I’ve figured out the pattern in the Vorjuu’s victims. He’ll be going after another holy man soon enough. When he does, I’ll be there, waiting for him. Here’s the place I’ll be springing my trap._ ” A series of numbers were projected into the air. “ _Meet me there in 30 minutes._ ” The message ended there.

“That’s another address in Kanagawa.”, Wataru realised. “It’s a few blocks away from that Church. We should get going if we’re helping Takumi stop him.”

However, Kamijo stuck his hand out in front of them. “No. I allowed the Vorjuu to escape before because of my mistrust of QidenTora. I’m going in first to make up for that mistake.”

Everyone seemed confused, but the old man nodded in approval. “You have realised how you failed before and pledged to improve. Go now, before it’s too late.”

* * *

In the house at the location given in the coordinates, Oomikaoo, Megaro and VolGagoze warped into the living room, where a man in a bathrobe was sitting with his face away from them. “This is almost too easy.”, Megaro stated. “Once we take this ol fool’s essence, I can combine it with the other 4 to create a new Soul Chip for your purposes, Oomikaoo.”

“Indeed.”, was Oomikaoo’s response. “It amazes me how easily you took to following my mission, Megaro. I never took you for the ‘take-action’ type.”

“Let’s just say I’ve felt some changes recently.”, Megaro nodded. “Now then, let’s get this guy now.”

“Not so fast.” The man stood up and threw his bathrobe off, revealing Takumi. “I sent the real target away and took his place so I could intercept you and thwart your plan here and now.”

“Why you…!”, Oomikaoo growled, brandishing his sword. But before he could do anything, VolGagoze sniffed at the air, and snorted, sucking in glowing energy. “Of course, the essence can still be here, even if the one it belongs to isn’t.”

VolGagoze sucked up the essence and then Megaro turned his latest device on the Vorjuu. “This should make you cough up the gold.” Sure enough, VolGagoze soon coughed up a Soul Chip, that instead of an animal, featured a blank space. “We have what we need, so let’s use it.” He reached down to pick it up.

“I’ll take that.”, Kamijo leapt in and grabbed the Soul Chip, landing next to Takumi. “Sorry for not being more helpful earlier.”, he said. “I should’ve taken care of VolGagoze instead of trying to upstage you.”

“Is that what you were doing?”, Takumi asked. “I just appreciated that I had some help at the time and didn’t even consider getting mad until I saw that VolGagoze had wandered off.”

Oomikaoo on the other hand, was still angry at the two. “You cur. That Soul Chip is mine. I need it’s power.”

“You want its power, eh?”, Kamijo said slyly. “Shall we, Takumi-san?”

“Indeed we shall, Kamijo-san.”, Takumi nodded. Both took out their transformation devices, inserted their Soul Chips and did their poses. “Kijuu Change!”

“Kijuu Henge!”

**Denchaku!**

**Doubutsu Gashin!**

The two transformed into QidenBlack and QidenTora, with the former loading the new Soul Chip into his Kijuu Magnum and pointing at Oomikaoo. “I’ll let you have this power.”

**Qiden Special Charge!**

Kamijo fired the beam at Oomikaoo. But instead of an explosion, he was surrounded with light and collapsed, clutching his head. A human briefly appeared within the silhouette, but he vanished along with the light when the blast subsided. “What was that?”, Kamijo asked.

“My memories.”, Oomikaoo stated. “I remember everything.” He then warped out by himself, to everyone’s confusion.

Megaro however was undeterred. “I guess it falls to me to destroy you Qidengers.” He zapped his two enemies with lightning from his hand, blowing them out the window.

The two fell out onto the street outside, with Megaro and VolGagoze joining them. “He seems tougher somehow.”, Black noted as he recovered.

“Yeah.”, QidenTora nodded in agreement. “Last time I faced him, it took one hit to take him out. Evidently, something’s changed.”

“Take this.”, Megaro fired his fist at the two, with them narrowly dodging. “I’ll do what the others couldn’t and take you out here and now.” He charged forward, engaging QidenTora in hand to hand.

“I’ll handle the Vorjuu.”, Black insisted, using his Kijuu Caliber to slash VolGagoze back. When it tried leaping at him, he kicked it to the ground.

“Black, finish it.” QidenTora removed his KijuuSlasher and threw it to his ally, before resuming the battle with his Kijuu Slasher.

“Thanks.”, Black caught the KijuuSlasher, combined it with his Kijuu Caliber and entered his Soul Chip.

**Tortoise, Charge Up!**

“Qiden _Hyper Fever!_ ” Black swung his borrowed weapon around before bringing it down on VolGagoze, destroying it.

“That won’t stop it for long, remember?”, Megaro laughed. “And I’ve made some improvements.” The usual laser fired down, reviving VolGagoze as a giant. “Not only can I have the enlargement beam activate remotely, but there are other surprises in store.”

QidenTora caught his KijuuSlasher, equipping it once more. “I’ll handle this one.” He opened the secondary panel and pressed button 1.

**Kijuu Tiger!**

The robotic giant manifested from within the gauntlet, engaging the giant Vorjuu. After delivering a slash, VolGagoze’s skin fell away, revealing a completely different creature, which resembled a shark and a dragon. “I included a DNA randomisation feature in the upgrades to the laser.”, Megaro stated as he once more zapped Black down, with the mutated VolGagoze doing likewise to Kijuu Tiger. “You can’t possibly anticipate what will be your opponent.”

“Maybe not.”, QidenTora said in response. “But I can still fight it off.” He pressed button 2 on his panel. “Kijuu Tiger, Bujin Henge!”

 **Tiger Fight!** Kijuu Tiger assumed its humanoid form, and began grappling with the mutant, managing to punch it back, while super speeding out of the way of its blasts. It then zoomed in and shot the enemy at point blank range, blowing it onto its back. QidenTora then aimed his KijuuSlasher at the mutant and pressed button 4. **Tiger Stardust!**

“Stri-Buster!” QidenTora had Kijuu Tiger fire its laser weapon at full power, totally vaporising the Vorjuu. “Another job well done.”

* * *

Megaro punched QidenBlack once more. “You fool. I’m much stronger than a standard human. It would take more than one of you to defeat me.”

“Qiden _Powered Shot!_ ” Megaro was knocked back by a series of blasts from behind. He turned around to see QidenPink, QidenBlue and QidenYellow standing behind him.

“Your fate ends here, Megaro.”, Yellow stated.

“Curse you.”, Megaro fumed. “I’ll deal with you Qidengers next time.” He then proceeded to teleport away.

“Geez. He got away.”, Blue bemoaned.

Pink comforted her. “Don’t worry, there’s always next time. Anyway, Kamijo-san, nice job taking on that Vorjuu on your own.”

“Oh, I wasn’t entirely alone.”, Black shrugged. He turned around to indicate his partner. “Thanks for your help…”. But QidenTora was gone. “Takumi-san?”

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, Oomikaoo stumbled through the corridors. “Where are you? Where are you hiding?”, he yelled. “SHOW YOURSELF, COWARD!”

“What’s with the noise?”, Gelashi asked as she came out of one of the rooms.

“I know he’s here.”, Oomikaoo growled. “He’s always been here, hiding out from everyone. But I’m going to find him.”

Gelashi was confused. “Who is this ‘he’?”

Oomikaoo didn’t answer. “Come out and face me! Stop hiding like a coward.” As if on cue, he suddenly vanished from the hallway, to Gelashi’s confusion.

* * *

Oomikaoo ended up in a realm of black smoke, facing down the being Moboroshina knew as Kagami. But Oomikaoo had been freed from the clouds surrounding his mind. He could see the true being in the mirror. “So, this is where you’ve hidden yourself away, Mairak!”

* * *

_To cripple humanity, Megaro creates a new Bukikai, capable of making the food of Earth indigestible to humans. Things get worse for the Qidengers when Gelashi uses this chaos to create a new Kanjin from a hungry baker’s daughter, Usaka Fuuka. Look forward to “Hungry! Earth’s Greatest Crisis!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. I’ve been working on other projects for a while, but I’m back with a new chapter now. 
> 
> So yeah, Kagami is the real big bad for this fic. I planned to save this reveal for later, but I felt there was no way I could keep it a secret in this fhapter’s big shake up.


	12. Hungry! Earth’s Greatest Crisis!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hibiki meets with an old friend from her school days with something of a big appetite. But when Megaro unleashes a new Bukikai that makes food unpalatable, the Qidengers find themselves dealing with a Vorjuu in addition to their current problem.

Hibiki decided to visit a French style patisserie. She felt that with everyone on edge with Voldos stepping up their attacks, she should try and do something to cheer them up. “Hello?”, she asked, ringing the bell on the counter for service.

“Welcome to the Mabayuki Patisserie.”, a young woman, red-haired with her hair in twin ponytails, exited the back room. “What would you like to…?” The woman suddenly stopped when she noticed who her latest potential customer was. “Komaki Hibiki-chan? From year two of middle school? It’s me, Usaka Fuuka.”

Hibiki was momentarily shocked, before having a moment of recognition. “Ah, Usaka-chan. It’s been a while since we met up with each other.”

“Yeah, the reunion last year.”, Fuuka nodded. “Now then, what can I do for an old friend?”

“I was looking to order a cake for some friends of mine.”, Hibiki said in response. She then remembered something from their school days. “Did you ever get over your eating problems? Back in school, it seemed like you couldn’t stop eating unless Sensei made you.”

“Oh, I’ve got that under control.”, Fuuka claimed. “It’s barely a problem anymore.” But as she wrote down the order being placed, she rubbed some frosting off a cupcake, licking it. “Just leave us your address. My boss will forward you the bill later.”

“Okay.”, Hibiki wrote down her address, before leaving the patisserie.

* * *

In the city, Megaro was standing there with a new Bukikai. This one was adorned with a belt of red-coloured grenades, with black pins. It also possessed a brown armour and a bulkier body, though the head was identical to that of Gatleander. “You have your mission, ArtilleRosary.”, he stated. “Get down to business.” The robot nodded, taking one of the “grenades” from its bandolier and throwing it through the air. It landed near a green grocers, releasing a gas that entered the food. “Now, I just have to sit back and wait.”

“Megaro-chan.” Megaro turned around to see Gelashi approaching him. “Did you think that I wouldn’t notice you leaving on an unauthorised mission? What are you up to?”

“I suppose I should tell you.”, Megaro sighed. “Humans are dependent on foodstuffs in order to maintain their energy levels and continue to function. My latest Bukikai is designed to exploit that by adding an element to their food that makes them inedible. Unable to eat, the humans will starve to death within days.” He then pushed his ally away. “Now, will you get out of the way? I’m working here.”

“You do that.”, Gelashi nodded, a plan devising in her head. “Meanwhile, I think I can use your plan as a launchpad for my own. Some people want to constantly eat, even if there isn’t a Bukikai-induced famine spreading. Their greed will be amplified by this.” She walked off, relishing the prospect of getting another negative emotional energy.

* * *

The next day, Kamijo was sat in the mansion, observing the newspaper. “That’s odd.”, he noted. “All the food people buy seems to be inedible.”

“That surely isn’t normal.”, the elderly caretaker Rin commented. “Someone must be behind it.”

“Yes.”, Kamijo realised. He darted from the room, taking out his JuuKeitai and calling everyone he could. “Has anyone else caught on that…?”

“ _All the food is turning to rubber?_ ”, came Wataru’s voice. “ _It’s pretty noticeable._ ”

“ _Big Bro and I haven’t been able to get so much as a crumb eaten today._ ”, was Mio’s response.

Hibiki was the last to reply. “ _And I was going to order us a cake. We’ll have to resolve this quickly so I don’t lose my money for nothing._ ”

“ _Okay_.”, Takuto’s voice came over the phone. “ _Let’s meet up to try and find what Voldos are up to this time_.”

* * *

At the top of the largest skyscraper in Shinjuku, ArtilleRosary laughed at the people below, scrabbling for food and resorting to beating each other up. “So, you’re the cause of all this.” The Bukikai turned around to see Tanjo Takumi standing behind him. “You’ve inserted something into the food supply, something that makes it so people are unable to eat anything. Well I’m here to stop you.” The robot’s eyes glowed red as it threw another of its ‘grenades’ at its enemy, narrowly missing as it exploded. “Kijuu Change!”

**Denchaku! Doubutsu no Kiba!**

Now transformed, QidenTora locked his Juu Sai with a sword that the robot deployed, with the two proceeding to slash at each other. Tora then delivered a kick to ArtilleRosary’s chest, knocking the bottom half of the robot back. “Kay, time to finish this.” He then took out his Go-Onger Soul Chip and inserted it into his Juu Sai.

**Go-Onger! Charge Up!**

“Mach Jugekiha!” QidenTora advanced in a manner similar to Go-On Red’s Saber Straight attack, only for ArtilleRosary to leap out of the way and only suffer some mild damage to one of his arms. “He got away. But I’ll get him next time.”

* * *

At the patisserie Hibiki visited earlier, Fuuka was clawing at most of the food, much to the concern of her manager, Madame Cuirbien. Said boss wasn’t actually French, but she adopted the mannerisms in order to increase her business. “Madamoiselle, we do not try to eat our own products if we wish to sell them.”

“I need to eat.”, Fuuka said, almost ravenous from hunger. “If I can’t get something in my stomach soon, I think I’m going to faint.”

“So, you want to eat something?” It was at that point a smell filled the air. Fuuka looked over to see a woman in the apparel of an ice cream seller, holding a bowl of what looked like strawberry ice cream. “How about I give you some of my product, on the house?”

“Eh?”, was Madame Cuirbien’s reaction. “Who are you? How did you enter my bakery when we are closed?”

The woman ignored her, instead continuing to hold the bowl in front of Fuuka. “Well, what do you say? Don’t worry, it’s perfectly edible.”

Fuuka grabbed the bowl and began wolfing down the ice cream, not bothering to use the spoon. “Oh my god, this is pretty good.”, she said as she continued to eat. After eating practically the whole bowl, Usaka Fuuka dropped the bowl, convulsing in pain as her hands and face began to cover themselves in fur. Her mouth began to grow a buck tooth as her two ponytails pointed upwards and transformed into rabbit-like ears resembling baguettes. With that, the magic trick was complete. Usaka Fuuka was gone, replaced with a humanoid rabbit woman, wearing the same clothes, bearing some resemblance to a shortcake, with one thing on her mind. “Hungry.”, the creature growled.

“Don’t worry, my Gluten Rabbit-chan.”, Gelashi, now transforming back into her true form, put her hand on the monster’ shoulder. “You’ll be able to eat to your heart’s content and beyond.”

Madame Cuirbien backed away in fear as Gluten Rabbit began grabbing the food off the shelves and stuffing it into her mouth. “Non, don’t hurt me.”, she begged. “I’m your boss.”

Gluten Rabbit turned to her former employer with hunger on her face. She grabbed the larger woman and stuffed her into her mouth in one motion, swallowing her whole. “Hungry!” Her chef’s apron began to split open, exposing a chest resembling a muffin with frosting.

“The more you eat, the stronger you become.”, Gelashi stated. “Now, I’ve got a 5 course meal waiting for you.”

* * *

In an alleyway, Megaro was working on repairs to ArtilleRosary. “Hold still.”, he snapped. “I can’t fix you if you fight me.”

“Hold it right there.” Megaro and his Bukikai turned around to see the 5 main Qidengers approaching them. “So you’re the one poisoning the city’s food supply.”, Takuto stated. “Well, that ends here.”

Megaro fumed at this. “I didn’t think you’d show up so quickly to defeat me, Qidengers.” He raised his arms, summoning a group of Vordorons. “Get them.”

“Kijuu Henge!” The 5 knocked the Vordorons away as they initiated their own transformations.

**Shishi! Kame! Falcon! Kajiki! Jaguar! Doubutsu Gashin!**

The 5 newly-transformed Qidengers used their weapons to knock down some Vordorons, along with some punching and kicking moves. “Now then, let’s take down this Bukikai.”, QidenRed stated.

“Hungry!” The fighting stopped as the Gluten Rabbit leapt down from a skyscraper, running towards ArtilleRosary. It grabbed the Bukikai and began chomping on its chest, causing it to let out an electronic howl of pain. Eventually, the robot fell prone, the life fading from its eyes as Gluten Rabbit continued to eat its body.

“Ugh, that’s disgusting.”, QidenBlue said, covering her eyes.

“It must be a new Kanjin.”, QidenBlack stated. “No Vorjuu would do this kind of thing.”

“That means some poor person gave into negative emotions.”, QidenPink said sadly. She then drew her Kijuu Magnum. “We’ll just have to save them.”

From the side, Megaro observed the situation. “That damn Gelashi. She used my plan to help her own ambitions. I’ll get even with her later.” He then teleported out.

“Hungry!”, Gluten Rabbit yelled once more as it bounced up and down, creating a shockwave that sent most of the Qidengers spinning backward. However, QidenPink and QidenYellow were able to keep standing, aiming their firearms at her and inserting their specific Soul Chips.

**Qiden Charge! Buster! Kyu!**

“Qiden Deletion Shot!”

“Qiden All-Star Break!”

The two attacks hit Gluten Rabbit directly, surrounding her with flames. Flames which cleared to reveal Usaka Fuuka, who was somewhat exhausted. “What happened?”, she asked. “Where am I?”

“Usaka-chan?”, Pink said in shock as she reverted back to Hibiki. “You’re the Kanjin?” She then had a realisation. “Your eating problem. You didn’t get over it, did you?”

“I am trying.”, Fuuka pleaded. “It’s just that with the food becoming inedible, I really needed to eat. I couldn’t help myself.” She then keeled over in pain, transforming back into the Gluten Rabbit. “Hungry!”

“Hibiki, get back!”, Black pushed Hibiki out of the way, before he was grabbed and devoured.

Blue then leapt into the fray, hitting the Kanjin with her Kijuu Caliber several times. But the monster simply took every hit, laughing. “What? It’s like it’s shrugging off my attacks.”, she exclaimed.

“Of course it is.”, Gelashi stated, as she warped into the area. “Gluten Rabbit becomes much harder to defeat the more it consumes. It also increases in size to the point that it will eventually grow on its own. And then, any people it has consumed will become new Gluten Rabbits, who will join their mother in consuming the Earth.”

“Hungry!” Gluten Rabbit then grabbed QidenBlue, stuffing her into her mouth and growing even fatter and taller.

“We need to withdraw.”, QidenRed stated. QidenYellow then threw down a smoke bomb he had created, allowing the three to make an exit undetected.

“Leave them.”, Gelashi said to her creation. “For now, gorge yourself on other entrees at the local supermarket.”

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, Megaro stumbled into his private lab. “Curse that Gelashi.”, he fumed. “The first chance I get, I’ll get my revenge.” He then saw a portal appear before him, from which the figure of Oomikaoo flew out, crashing unconscious into the wall. “Oomikaoo! What’re you doing here?”

“ _I sent him there._ ” Oomikaoo turned to see that beyond the portal was a figure, surrounded by black fog. “ _He has been damaged by his previous battle with the Qidengers. I have been able to fix his mind, but his body will need to be passed on to someone else for repairs. Can I entrust you with this task?_ ”

“Yessir.”, Megaro nodded as the vision vanished. “Now then, Omikaoo. What can I do to upgrade you into a stronger warrior?”

* * *

Down on Earth, the three remaining Qidengers reviewed footage of Gluten Rabbit tearing her way through a supermarket, devouring the customers as much as she did the produce. “It’s no good.”, Takuto fumed, knocking some papers off the table. “There’s no indication of anything we can do to slow her down.”

“Not even eating everything in that supermarket could slow her down.”, Hibiki lamented.

It was then that Wataru had a realisation. “Wait a minute.” He then rewound the footage and stopped at a certain point, zooming in on a certain detail. “The Kanjin left the flowers untouched. Hibiki-san, did Usaka-san have any allergies to flowers?”

“She did have something of an abnormal reaction to pollen.”, Hibiki remembered. She then had a realisation. “A reaction that’s carried over to the Kanjin. We just need to trick her into eating some pollen from those flowers.”

“I’ll go and get a sample.”, Wataru said, leaving the room. As he did, an alarm sounded, followed by Takuto’s JuuKeitai ringing.

It was the old man. “ _I’m out of town for a few days and you end up having to deal with a crisis. Turn on the tv.”_

Takuto complied, showing a news report of a giant Gluten Rabbit rampaging through the city. “ _Reports are coming in of another monster rampaging through the city. Only this one also seems to be devouring everything in sight instead of destroying it. All attempts to take down the creature have so far failed.”_

“I guess we’ll have to move out.”, Takuto stated as he and Hibiki ran out of the room.

* * *

Inside the Gluten Rabbit, Mio and Kamijo came to, seeing themselves surrounded by various bits of food and other miscellany. “So this must be the inside of that Kanjin. A lot of space for food, but no way to reasonably digest it all.”, the latter commented. “Pretty fitting, really.”

“We’d better try and get out of here.”, Mio said, as she began to notice several other people in the stomach. “If we don’t, we and all these people will be turned into more copies of the Gluten Rabbit.”

“You mean we’re all going to become like that thing that ate us?”, a panicking Madame Cuirbien yelled. “You’ve got to get us out of here.”

“We’re trying.”, Kamijo assured her. “But is pretty difficult to do anything until we can assess the situation.”

* * *

“Hungry!” The now giant and enormously fat Gluten Rabbit leapt through the streets grabbing onto buildings and taking bites out of them.

“Hey.”, Kijuu Lion landed next to the giant Kanjin, joined by Kijuu Falcon. “I know some of these buildings are ugly, but you need a permit to destroy them.”

“Hungry!” The Kanjin stumbled forward, beginning a fistfight with the robot. Kijuu Lion tried kicking Gluten Rabbit, but it’s sheer weight absorbed the hit, before it delivered a punch that sent that energy back to Kijuu Lion. Kijuu Falcon tried shooting at the target, to similar results.

“She’s tough.”, QidenPink commented as the monster continued to smash and eat the scenery. “The two of us could barely scratch her.”

“How about three of us?” Kijuu Tiger then appeared and began grappling with Gluten Tiger, pushing it back several feet and demolishing several skyscrapers. “Where’s the rest of the Qidengers?”, QidenTora’s voice echoed. “I thought they’d be helping you with this.”

“Two of them are in that thing’s stomach.”, QidenRed radioed back. “And Yellow is currently busy.”

* * *

From the ground, QidenTora was confused by this. “What could he be busy with?”

“Working on something to stop that thing.” Wataru came running towards QidenTora, carrying something in hand. “This is similar to the formula that ArtilleRosary fired, except that it will only affect that Kanjin’s ability to digest anything it tries to eat. It’s made up of elements that it doesn’t like. .”

“So if we douse the entire area with it, then the thing won’t want to eat anything. It’s negative energy will be released.”, QidenTora realised. He then signalled for Kijuu Tiger to place its weapon on the ground, while Kijuu Lion handled the fight, trying to keep its sword out of the Gluten Rabbit’s mouth. “Throw it in there.”

“Okay.” Wataru pitched the ball he was carrying into the cannon wielded by Kijuu Tiger, which then resumed the fight. “Fire it, now.”

“Okay.”, QidenTora pressed button 4 on his controller and aimed. “Stri-Buster!”

**Tiger Stardust!**

The robot fired its weapon, causing a red dust to enter the air. Gluten Rabbit got a hold of her enemy’s sword, and took a bite. “Hungry!” But upon taking a bite, she then spat the sword out, disgusted. Gluten Rabbit then tried taking a bite out of a nearby building, only to meet the same result. “What’s the matter, Usaka-kun?”, QidenPink asked. “Are you sure you don’t want to eat that?”

“No!”, Gluten Rabbit declared. “I don’t want to eat… anymore.” She then violently vomited out everything she had swallowed, including the people as the Kanjin returned to her original size. Gluten Rabbit then transformed back into Fuuka, as the negative energy left her body. She then noticed her boss among the people recovering. “I’m sorry.”, she pleaded. “Don’t fire me for this.”

“Relax.”, Madame Cuirbien assured her. “I’m not going to fire you for something you couldn’t control. Though if you ever feel like you’re too hungry to work, I think I can overlook some rule breaking.”

“Don’t worry.”, was Fuuka’s response. “I’m not going to be doing that anymore. But speaking of overlooking…”

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, Gelashi walked in with another orb. “I didn’t destroy the Earth with my new Kanjin, but I was able to get the energy of pure greed for my collection.”, she noted.

“I don’t care about your petty collections.”, Moboroshina yelled. “The point is that both you, and Megaro, failed to destroy the humans with your simultaneous plans. And with Oomikaoo having gone MIA, I have very few reliable warriors to serve me.

“What’s that about Oomikaoo going missing?”, Megaro asked, entering the room with a second figure. It was Oomikaoo, now with his left arm, right leg and part of his face replaced with mechanical parts. “I found him injured following his last battle with the Qidengers. That Soul Chip he intended to create caused massive damage to him. So I repaired him as a stronger warrior.”

The now cybernetic Oomikaoo knelt down on one knee, presenting his arm in front of him and lowering his head. When he spoke, his voice was now synthesised. “I live to serve the glory of Voldos.”, he stated in a totally monotone delivery.

As Moboroshina was shocked at this new development, Calam looked on from the side, plotting his own scheme. “Let the fools fester in their own failure. I on the other hand, I’m going to take on a new power that will bring the Earth and those Qidengers, to their knees.”

* * *

Sometime later, Hibiki received a visitor to her apartment. “Usaka-chan. What are you doing here?”

“I thought I’d come in person to give you something, Komaki-chan.”, Fuuka presented Hibiki with a box, which contained the cake she had ordered from the Patisserie the other day. “It’s my way of making it up for everything that happened before.”

“Oh, you don’t need to worry about that.”, Hibiki assured her friend. “Now then, about the payment for this cake…”

“Don’t worry about that.”, Fuuka shook her head. “We both know that you’re one of the Qidengers who helped save the two of us. So we’re going to give you this cake on the house. Don’t worry, we won’t tell anyone your secret.”

“That’s a relief.”, Hibiki smiled.

* * *

_Tired of constantly losing to the Qidengers, Calam enlists the aid of Megaro and Dimayta to bolster his strength. The power of Soul Chips from the Qidengers’ predecessors gives him the strength to overpower all of them. And then, something strange happens. Join us for “Calam’s Dramatic Battle! The Birh of a New Enemy!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea of Gluten Rabbit is basically a parody of Cure Whip from Kira Kira Pretty Cure Ala Mode. Her real name Usaka Fuuka is a slight play on the character’s real name Usami Ichika. 
> 
> I loved the idea of one monster threat creating a greater one. I’m surprised it hasn’t been done in an official series. I took some inspiration from other food-based monsters for both ArtilleRosary and Gluten Rabbit.


	13. Calam’s Dramatic Battle! The Birth of a New Enemy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Calam teams up with Megaro and Dimayta to increase his power to defeat the Qidengers, but the two have other ideas.

In a secret area within the Voldos Fortress, a cocoon like structure dissolved with a glow, revealing Dimayta, still in her humanoid form, but now in a different outfit. This one bore more of a resemblance to a military soldier. “At last, my metamorphosis is complete.”, she stated. “Now, I have to cement my new power by removing the main obstacle.”

* * *

In the main throne room, everyone turned around to see the source of several loud footprints. It was Dimayta, now sporting her new clothes. “So, you feel fit to return to us?”, Calam said mockingly to his absent assistant. “Where’ve you been hiding?”

“I’ve simply been preparing for something.”, she said to her boss, engaging in some seductive motions towards him, such as getting in close and shaking her hips. “And now, I’m ready to get rid of the obstacles impeding on our goal to conquer the Earth.”

“‘Obstacles’, eh?”, Calam thought. “Then I suppose you’ve got some plans to get rid of the Qidengers?”

“Of course I do.”, Dimayta answered, pressing her hand against her superior’s skin, fingering a lock of it, unbeknownst to him. “But I’m going to need Megaro’s help for it.”

“Me?”, the robotic member of Voldos exclaimed. “Why would I help you to -?”

Dimayta went over to Megaro and grabbed onto him in a sexual manner, a position she used to whisper into his ear. “If you help me, then I can not only get rid of your rival Calam, but also give you a whole zoo full of Vorjuu for your experiments.”

She then let go, as Megaro coughed. “As I was saying, I’d be glad to help you out with your plan.”, he said.

Moboroshina was confused, but didn’t let it show. “What plan do you have that could stand a chance over any of your superiors?”

“It’s simple really.”, Dimayta stepped forward. “Most of our strongest threats have been enhanced through the Soul Chips. So if we could enhance one of our strongest warriors through multiple Soul Chips, then the Qidengers would be unable to put up a challenge.”

“And you want me to be the test subject.”, Calam stated. “Well then. I accept.”

“Very well then.” Oomikaoo stepped forward, holding four Soul Chips, a Dragon, a Gryphon, a Minotaur and a Pegasus. “These were recovered from the bodies of the previous Qidengers who defeated Mairak-sama.”

“Yes, I know.”, Calam stated, reaching out to grab those medals. “I was there.”

* * *

_Calam remembered the events of 15 years ago. Mairak, a butterfly-like being, accompanied by a group of Vordorons, made his way through 5 Qidengers, themed around a Black Gryphon, a Red Dragon, a Green Minotaur, a Blue Pegasus and a Purple Phoenix. He generated a sword and then ran through the Dragon and Pegasus Qidengers, before facing down the vengeful Minotaur warrior. “Weak.”, he commented, grabbing his enemy by the face and blowing him into a wall with his energy, knocking him unconscious. He went and picked up the Soul Chips from each of them. “Can none of you humans pose a challenge to me?”_

_The Gryphon hero managed to knock down a few Vordorons with his sword, before grabbing one of them as a shield. “You cur.”, he declared. “I’m going to end you here and now.”_

_Mairak absorbed the energy from the three Chips he had collected, before aiming his hand at his enemy. “You insolent! Take this!” He fired the energy at the Gryphon, who dodged and allowed the Vordoron to take the hit._

_But instead of being destroyed, the Vordoron transformed into oni-esque creature with the damaged armour from his previous form on his left shoulder and right shin with a permanent scowl. “I am alive.”, the newly-created creature declared. “Thank you for giving me new power, Mairak-sama.”_

_“Well, this is unexpected.”, Mairak stated, before helping his new ally up and generating a sword for him. “Now then, my new Demon General Calam. Help me claim victory in this battle.”_

_“As you wish.”, Calam used his new weapon to charge at the Phoenix warrior, who used her sword to stab him directly in the chest._

* * *

In the present, as Calam looked down at the scar from his first battle, Moboroshina tried to stop Oomikaoo from handing over the Soul Chips to Megaro. “No, don’t you dare.”, she begged. “You leave those alone.”

Oomikaoo blasted her back with energy he had received from Mairak. “Don’t interfere, Moboroshina.”, he stated. He then passed the Chips to Megaro. “Use this power to bring an end to the Qidengers and that old fool’s interference.”

“I will.”, Megaro nodded, motioning Calam and Dimayta to follow him.

* * *

Down in Tokyo, Takumi could sense something strange in the air. It felt similar to the Qidengers. But at the same time, it felt like a Voldos energy. That worried him greatly.

* * *

In Megaro’s lab, Calam was ushered into a chamber, while Megaro deposited the Soul Chips into a console connected to said chamber. “This machine will break down the energy of the Soul Chips and distill it into a gas.”, Megaro told his subject. “It will then infuse you with this gas in great abundance, increasing your power.”

“Cut the explanations and actually do it then.”, Calam growled, tapping on the glass of the chamber.

“Indeed.”, Dimayta said from the other side of the lab, folding her arms. “It would be better if we could accelerate this. Please hurry.”

“Okay then.”, Megaro flicked several levers on the console, before pressing the button. “Gene Dispersion System, activate.” Red mist was released in the chamber, obscuring Calam briefly. When the mist cleared, Calam smashed his way out of the chamber. “How do you feel?”

Calam proceeded to bring his clenched fist down one of the tables, smashing it utterly. “I feel great.”, he stated. “Now, to deal with those Qidengers.”

As he left, Dimayta observed, her hand turning into a claw. “Everything is going according to plan.”, she noted.

* * *

At her elementary school workplace, Hibiki was finishing up for the day, by going through the papers. “Hmm, there’s some spelling errors here.”, she noted, looking at Hiroaki’s paper. She then tried moving onto the next paper, only to hear a sinister laughter. “Who’s there?”, she asked as she stood up and took out her JuuKeitai.

“Oh, you know me very well.” Hibiki didn’t even see Calam fall down and knock her out.

* * *

Elsewhere, Wataru was walking down the street, making a phone call to his old teacher. “Yes, Megumi-sensei. I’ve been making some good progress in my time away. I think I might be able to pay you a visit soon enough.” He then heard the same laughter that Hibiki had heard earlier. “I’m sorry, I’m going to have to call you back.” He hung up the phone and looked around, hoping to catch his attacker. But he still pulled out his JuuKeitai, pressing a sequence of buttons that sent a distress signal to the nearest Qidenger. “I know you’re here.”, he called out. “Show yourself.”

Calam stepped out of the shadows. “You’re a lot more perceptive than your pink friend was when I went after her. She didn’t know what hit her.” He then felt a twinge of pain in his chest, but shrugged it off.

“Hibiki-kun?”, Wataru realised. “What’ve you done to her?” He ran forward into battle, throwing a punch at Calam, who managed to catch it. “How did you…?”

“Just a little taste of my new power.”, Calam stated. He then knocked Wataru down with a hit to the chest, before rendering him unconscious by punching him in the chest. “Two down.”

* * *

Sometime later, Mio came running down the street, where she ran into Kamijo. “Kamijo-san, what’re you doing here?”, she asked.

“The same thing as you are, presumable.”, was his answer. “Responding to Wataru-kun’s distress call. Though where’s Takuto? I assumed he’d be here with you.”

“He actually went looking for you.”, Mio said in response. “He thought you’d be at the mansion like you usually are and went to get you.”

“So you’re one man short of your little group?” Both turned around to see Calam standing there with his arms folded. “Well then, I’ll simply take him out with QidenTora and get rid of you two here and now.”

“Calam.”, Kamijo said angrily. “You must be what attacked Wataru-kun earlier. And the reason that Hibiki-kun’s dropped off the radar.”

“What, Calam?”, Mio laughed. “Considering we’ve beat him a good few times by now, I find that hard to believe.”

“There’s more to me now than meets the eye.”, Calam gloated. He then felt the same pains again, before unleashing a beam of energy at the two Qidengers, who were knocked back. “I meant to do that.”, he insisted.

“Looks like he’s a lot tougher than I gave him credit for.”, Mio stated. “Let’s transform.”

“Right.”, Kamijo nodded as the two prepared their JuuKeitais. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Kame! Kajiki! Doubutsu Gashin!**

QidenBlack and QidenBlue emerged from the explosion, both wielding their Kijuu Calibers. “Let’s go.”, Blue commented as the two charged forward.

However, Calam blocked both swords with his bare hands, before blasting them back with his energy. “Like I implied, I’ve become much more powerful now.” He then delivered simultaneous punches that knocked the two back, reverting them to normal and knocking them out. “Now to set my trap.”

* * *

Meanwhile, Takuto arrived at the mansion, to be met with Rin, the old housekeeper. “Where’s Kamijo?”, he asked her. “Tell me!”

“He went out.”, Rin answered him. “He heard that Wataru-chan was in trouble and went out to help.”

“That’s why I came here.”, Takuto cursed himself. “I’d better check in with him.” He pulled his JuuKeitai out and called his friend. “Kamijo?”

“ _I’m sorry, he’s currently indisposed._ ”, Calam’s voice came from the other end. “ _As are all of your other 4 friends._ ”

“Calam! You cur.”, Takuto growled. “Where are they?”

“ _They’re fine._ ”, came Calam’s response. “ _I’ve got them at the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line. I want you and QidenTora to meet with me at that location in 30 minutes. If you don’t show, then I will kill all 4 of them. You have been warned_.” With that, the call ended.

“I’ve got to go.”, Takuto decided with no hesitation, beginning to walk out. “Try and contact QidenTora to show up. I know he’s called us before.” With that said, he left.

* * *

Calam sat near the bridge, the 4 captive Qidengers bound in chains. “Your friend’s time is almost up.”, he informed them. “He’d better get here soon.”

“Don’t underestimate my Onii-san.”, Mio shouted.

“He likely to come up with a plan to free us.”, Hibiki added. “He’d never surrender to you.”

“I surrender.” Everyone turned to see Takuto walking towards them, hands in the air.

Wataru sighed. “This should be a surprise, but somehow it isn’t.”

“Yeah.”, Kamijo concurred. “He’s way too much of a hero to disobey the bad guy’s ‘comply or die’ request.”

Calam laughed in triumph. “So, you’ve decided to show up. But yet I don’t see a sign of QidenTora anywhere. So I guess I’ll have to kill your friends and you.”

“Don’t be too premature.” Everyone looked up to see Takumi jumping down from the bridge above. “Your elderly friend called to inform me of the situation. I sensed the presence of Voldos beforehand, and was already investigating. Something was up with the feeling, almost like it had been corrupted.”

“You get those feelings too?”, Takuto asked as he looked at Takumi for the first time. He could see that they had the same eyes and hairstyle. “You look… familiar.”

Even the other Qidengers could see it. “Those two really do look similar.”, Mio noted. “And now it turns out they can both sense Voldos’ presence.”

“Except Takuto hasn’t done that in a while.”, Wataru noted. “I still haven’t figured out why.”

“Enough of this.”, Calam growled. He summoned his sword and cut through the chains, releasing the Qidengers. “ ow I can destroy all of you here and now. And with the power of you predecessors as the cherry on top.”

“‘Our predecessors’?”, Hibiki asked. “Kamijo-san, what’s he talking about?”

Kamijo shook his head. “I don’t know.”, was all he could say.

“What, that old fool didn’t tell you?”, Calam said mockingly. “There was another group of Qidengers before you, during the Night of the Crimson Sky. And they all fell to our armies, allowing me to gain the 4 Soul Chips from which I draw my power.”

“I don’t care where you get your power.”, Takumi yelled. “All I care about is us taking you down, with a… Kijuu Change!” He prepped his KijuuSlasher to transform.

The other 5 likewise prepped their JuuKeitais. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Denchaku! Doubutsu no Kiba!**

**Shishi! Kame! Falcon! Kajiki! Jaguar! Doubutsu Gashin!**

The 6 now stood, transformed into their powered suits, initiating a roll call. “QidenRed!”

“QidenBlack!”

“QidenPink!”

“QidenBlue!”

“QidenYellow!”

“The Fast Ferocious Warrior, QidenTora!”

“We are… Kijuu Sentai Qidenger!”

“Pfft. You’re not so tough anymore.” Calam charged his sword with energy, sending it flying towards the Qidengers, who jumped out of the way of the explosion.

QidenTora was the first to make a move. “Let’s see you fight back against this.” He began pumping his KijuuSlasher by clenching the trigger.

**Beast Slash!**

The attack hit Calam, but he suffered no damage. “Nice try!”, he stated as he knocked QidenTora back.

Yellow and Pink then attacked by inserting their Soul Chips into their Kijuu Magnums. “Qiden _Powered Shot_!”

**Qiden Charge! Falcon! Jaguar!**

The two blasts hit Calam, but he knocked them back at their senders, sending them flying. Then Blue and Black tried attacking with their Kijuu Calibers. “Qiden _Powered Slash_!”

**Qiden Charge! Kame! Kajiki!**

However, as before, Calam caught the two swords, before sending the energy back to sender. “Can none of you even challenge me?”, he yelled.

“I can at least try.”, Red declared, aiming his Kijuu Buster. “Let’s see what the power of a legendary Sentai can do to you.” He inserted the Bioman Soul Chip into his weapon and aimed. “Qiden _Super Electron_!”

**Qiden Full Charge! Bio!**

This blast hit Calam head on, managing to knock him backwards. “Okay, that actually hurt slightly.”, he commented.

“That’s it.”, Takumi realised. “We can’t hurt him with our own powers because they’re equally matched. But the powers of others might help turn the tide.” He inserted his Kijuu Caliber into his KijuuSlasher, forming the Juu Sai. He then inserted his Go-Onger Chip into it.

**Go-Onger, Charge Up!**

“Kousoku Jujigekiha!”

Pink and Yellow then assembled their own Kijuu Busters and inserted their Legend Soul Chips. “Qiden _Deletion Shot!_ ”

“Qiden _Star Crash!_ ”

**Juu Sai Kiba Geki!**

**Qiden Full Charge! Buster! Kyu!**

The three attacks hit Calam, sending him flying with an explosion. Though he still managed a quick recovery. “You fools. It will take you more than that to…”

He suddenly collapsed in pain, a wing emerging from his back and a set of horns came out of his arm. “What’s happening to me?”, he asked as tentacles began to emerge from his scar, tearing the skin off his torso.

A noblewoman-esque laugh was heard as Dimayta appeared. “You shouldn't have placed such blind trust in myself and Megaro, ‘Calam-sama’. No being can stand up to the energy from 4 Soul Chips at once, no matter how strong their compatibility. We arranged this whole thing to get rid of you.”

“You wanted to get rid of me?”, Calam exclaimed, his hand turning into a dragon’s claw. “Why?”

“Because I’m tired of taking orders from someone who amounts to a jumped up Vordoron from a dead leader. I’ve taken a sample of your DNA to complete my evolution into a stronger life form, and with it, command over those Vorjuu I captured for you in exchange for no reward.” She then transformed, but instead of her previous monstrous form, she now resembled a blue version of Calam’s face, dressed in an alien-looking army uniform, complete with beret and staff. “I’ll be taking your place as the Demon General of the Phantom Monster Corps.”

“Dimayta. You….” Calam’s face then tore apart completely, revealing a hybrid of a dragon and a horse’s head. The creature that had torn its way out of Calam’s skin then proceeded to increase in size, before proceeding to devastate the city.” Dimayta laughed as she faded out.

“What just happened?”, a confused Hibiki asked. “Weren’t they supposed to be allies?”

“Never mind that now.”, Takuto said in response. “We need Kanzen Kijuu’Oh.”

**Complete Formation!**

The robot flew into battle, with the Qidengers all taking their usual places. “Let’s go.” The robot swung its sword at the chimeric abomination, but it blocked, before swinging its tale at Kijuu’Oh, knocking it sideways into a skyscraper. As the robot recovered, it tried kicking its enemy back. But the former Calam was tough, managing to tank the hit.

**Tiger Fight!**

Kijuu Tiger appeared in Bujin Henkei mode, pulling Calam back and throwing him to the ground. “Are you okay, Kijuu’Oh?”, QidenTora asked. “Let’s finish him together.”

“Okay.”, Red replied from within Kijuu’Oh. The two robots then prepared their attacks. “Kijuu’Oh Final End!”

“Stri-Buster!” The two attacks were launched at Calam. But before they could hit, something emerged from him, taking the form of a warrior, primarily red, with a ‘distorted’ appearance adorned with the faces of various creatures emerged from the body of Calam, generating a sword that absorbed the hit. “What?”, QidenTora exclaimed.

The creature then shot the energy back at the two robots, reverting Kijuu’Oh back to Kijuu Lion by knocking its limbs off. “What is that thing?”, Red asked.

“Me?”, the creature asked. “I am the ultimate hybrid life form, Giga-Khimaira. Remember it, for it is the last thing you will hear.” He then proceeded to charge at the robots.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not much to say here. Just that this is the beginning of the mid-season upgrade arc. 
> 
> Giga-Khimaira takes his name from an obscure Ultra Series Kaiju.


	14. Climax! The New Combination Appears!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In order to face both Ginga-Khimaira and the mutated Calam, Takumi must try the unused button 3 on his KijuuSlasher. But can he work up the support of the others needed to pull it off.

_In the last instalment of Kijuu Sentai Qidenger, Calam was tricked by Dimayta and Megaro, the former having him turned into a hybrid mutant that attacked the city. The Qidengers fought back with their Kijuu Giants, but were shocked when the creature split off part of itself to birth a new life form: Giga-Khimaira._

* * *

“I won’t let you hurt my father. Take this!” Giga-Khimaira generated a halberd and dug it into Kijuu Tiger, pushing it to the side.

“Takumi-san!”, Takuto called out from within KijuuOh. But they ended up being buffeted by the mutant that used to be Calam, preventing them from providing aid. The robot tried punching back, but the hit merely connected without causing any visible damage. The mutant then pushed KijuuOh into a building, continuing to punch it frequently.

“We can’t hold on much longer.”, Hibiki called out. “The arms and legs are the only thing keeping us from being crushed by that thing. And even they won’t hold out for long.”

“Then there’s only one choice.” Takuto opened a glass container labelled “Emergency Eject” and pulled the lever within upwards. The other 4 Qidengers then had their chairs lowered out of the cockpit, much to everyone’s shock. “It’s for your own good.”

“Wait…”, Kamijo called out.

“Takuto-san!”, Wataru begged.

“Onii-chan.”, Mio said with some sadness.

Kijuume, Kijuu Falcon, Kijuuki and Kijuuguar detached from Kijuu Lion, who continued to suffer the same beating Kijuu’Oh had been subjected to.

* * *

On the ground, QidenTora felt the shocks from Kijuu Tiger being buffeted. “I’ve never taken this much damage before.”, he noted. “Perhaps I might have to try that button.” He looked down at button 3, before shaking it off, as Giga-Khimaira hit him once more with his halberd. “No, I shouldn’t think about that. Let’s just try the usual.” He dialled button 4.

**Tiger Stardust!**

“Stri-Buster!” QidenTora had his robot fire it’s finishing move at Giga-Khimaira, only for it to be deflected by the latter spinning his halberd incredibly fast. The monster then turned his head towards QidenTora.

“Looks like I’ve been fighting the wrong opponent.”, Giga-Khimaira stated. He then shrunk down to a more humanoid size, landing next to the extra Qidenger. “Allow me to rectify this.” He once more generated a weapon, this time a regular sword, and charged into battle with his opponent.

QidenTora blocked the blow with his KijuuSlasher, closing the relay panel and inserting his Soul Chip, before pressing the trigger several times. “I don’t have time for this. So I might as well get out of here as quickly as possible.”

**Beast Slash!**

The power discharge resulted in a blinding flash. When it cleared, Giga-Khimaira was alone, except for a newly arrived Gelashi. “Well, it looks like that QidenTora managed to get the better of you. Just like he did with your father.”

“You knew my father?”, Giga-Khimaira said with shock, before dispersing his weapon and bowing down. “Please, I beg you to help me restore him to his normal self. He’s in great pain.”

“Oh don’t worry.”, Gelashi nodded, helping him up. “I’ll even help you take down the one who caused this to him.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Takumi, now untransformed, limped his way through the streets, clutching his injured right arm. “I got a lot of feedback from that battle.”, he whispered. “Kijuu Tiger is durable, but it can’t take that much damage by itself.”

It was then that the 4 Qidengers that had been jettisoned made their appearance. “Takumi-san.”, Hibiki called out. “Glad to see you’re safe and alright.”

“Oh I’m safe,” Takumi wheezed “but alright is another matter. Where’s your friend in Red?”

“He stayed behind in Kijuu Lion to try and hold off Calam’s mutated corpse.”, Wataru informed him. “Not that it’ll do much good on its own.”

“Yeah.”, Kamijo nodded. “The other Kijuu were what supplied the robot with improved defensive and offensive capabilities. Without them, he’s pretty much sunk against that thing.”

Then, Takumi had an idea. “My Kijuu is about the same as Kijuu Lion in terms of attack power. Perhaps it can combine with yours for greater power.”

Mio thought about it. “Well, it would explain that button on your KijuuSlasher that you never press. Have you ever tried it?”

Takumi thought about it. “I did when I first got the device and was testing out Kijuu Tiger’s capabilities. But it didn’t seem to do anything, so I left it alone.”

“Come to think of it, we did have some problems with the Kijuu trying to launch themselves a while back, but we dismissed it as a mechanical fault.”, Kamijo recalled. “Maybe they were actually being signalled by that button.”

“Whatever the reason, we should ask the old man about it.”, Hibiki suggested. “If anyone’s likely to know about a potential combination, it’s him.”

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, everyone was observing their new member looking around. “So you’re saying that this creature, this ‘Giga-Khimaira’, was spawned from the mutated Calam?”, Moboroshina asked.

“Indeed he was.”, was Gelashi’s answer. “And he seems to think our late ally is his father.”

“Interesting.”, Oomikaoo noted.

“I beg that you allow me to serve you, Lady Moboroshina.”, Giga-Khimaira bowed. “I wish to carry on the will of my father, whatever that would be. Even defeating his enemies.”

“Very well, I accept your offer.”, Moboroshina said. “Prove your worth by destroying your father’s enemies, the Qidengers.”

“Yes, Madam.” Giga-Khimaira saluted and made his exit.

It was then that Dimayta, now dressed in the uniform of a military officer, entered the room. “My Queen, given that Calam is… no longer capable of carrying out the duty, I request permission to be promoted to Demon General in his place.”

“In the lack of any suitable over candidates, you leave me no choice.” Moboroshina then raised her arm. “But be warned, if I find even the slightest hint of deception or betrayal, then I won’t hesitate to dispose of you.”

“I understand.”, Dimayta then stood up and went over to Megaro, whispering. “We need to capture that mutant for our experiments without arousing suspicion. Can you create fake footage of his destruction?”

“Easily.”, Megaro nodded. “Giga-Khimaira’s DNA will prove incredibly fortuitous in my experiments to create a stronger breed of Vorjuu.”

* * *

In the city, Kijuu Lion continued to be pummelled by the mutant. “I’ve got to get out of here.”, Takuto come,noted as the power indicator glowed Red. “I’ve got to make it quick.” He pushed the levers forward, allowing his robot to break free from its grip and push the enemy back temporarily. “Eat this!” Kijuu Lion pulled out its sword and prepared his final attack, using it to hit the enemy and cause an explosion. “That should do it.” But unfortunately, the mutant survived, the last bits of Calam’s skin burning and falling off. “What?…” The mutant then proceeded to continue beating the now-powerless robot.

* * *

Elsewhere, the other 5 Qidengers returned to the mansion. “So, this is where you operate from?”, Takumi said as he looked around in awe. “I wish I’d joined you in full earlier. It’s a lot better than my limited resources.”

“I concur.”, the old man stated, making his return from his sabbatical. “Plus, it would make the Qidengers more unified for crises such as these.”

“Oji-san, we need to know something.”, Kamijo said, bringing them back on topic. “What is the purpose of button 3 of the KijuuSlasher relay control panel?”

“That button is intended to combine Kijuu Tiger with the other Kijuu in a similar manner to Kijuu Lion’s combination abilities.”, the old man answered. “But it requires all 5 in sync to work effectively.”

“Which means that we’re all going to have to go out there and fight.”, Hibiki stated. “But can we function as a team with someone we’re less associated with?”

“You and I still have some association with Takumi, remember?”, Wataru pointed out. “And Kamijo and Mio both managed to work with him in the past.”

“All we need to do is translate that into working as a single mind.”, Mio said. “Then we can secure victory.”

It was then that the alert sounded, turning on the news. “ _The mutated giant monster that appeared earlier near Tokyo Bay has defeated the current Sentai’s robot and has now proceeded to wreck the city. Where are the rest of the heroes fighting to save our city? We asked several people what they think on the matter._ ”

Hibiki turned the screen off. “It’s just going to be the same old complainers Koga Tetsuya paid to appear on the news to badmouth us. We should get going.”

* * *

In the city, the 5 ran through the screaming crowds towards the chaos. “There he is.”, Wataru pointed towards the mutant. “We just need to transform and stop it.”

“Not so fast, Qidengers.” The 5 turned around to see Giga-Khimaira standing behind them. “I’m going to defeat you and avenge my father.”

“Looks like we’re going to have to deal with this guy first.”, Takumi noted. “Guys, let’s change.”

“Kijuu Henge/Kijuu Change!”

The 5 transformed into their powered suits, before charging into battle with Giga-Khimaira. QidenBlack and QidenBlue crossed blades with his halberd, pushing him back with their combined strength, while QidenYellow and QidenPink shot at him with their Kijuu Magnums, buffeting, but not injuring, Giga-Khimaira. “Your opponent is me.”, QidenTora declared, assembling his Juu Sai and inserting the Go-Onger Soul Chip. **Go-Onger, Charge Up!** “Kousoku Jujigekiha!” He then zoomed towards Giga-Khimaira.

The other 4 Qidengers prepared their Kijuu Busters and inserted their Soul Chips. “Qiden Hyper Final!” They fired their blasts at Tora’s Juu Sai, empowering it to glow in their 4 colours. He then delivered a slash to Giga-Khimaira, causing the latter to be surrounded by flames.

However, the monster quickly pulled himself back together from his remains. “I can’t die…” he whispered “not until I… avenge my father… and stand alongside Dimayta, Megaro and Gelashi.”

This caused Yellow to speak up. “If you want to avenge your father, you should be going after Dimayta and Megaro. They’re the ones who caused his mutation.”

“What trickery is this?”, Giga-Khimaira growled.

“No tricks, just something you should hear.” Yellow then tapped into his suit’s internal recording systems, playing back a conversation from earlier. Giga-Khimaira recognised the voices as his father (though he had never met him) and Dimayta.

_“You shouldn't have placed such blind trust in myself and Megaro, ‘Calam-sama’. No being can stand up to the energy from 4 Soul Chips at once, no matter how strong their compatibility. We arranged this whole thing to get rid of you.”_

_“You wanted to get rid of me?”_

_“Because I’m tired of taking orders from someone who amounts to a jumped up Vordoron from a dead leader. I’ve taken a sample of your DNA to complete my evolution into a stronger life form, and with it, command over those Vorjuu I captured for you in exchange for no reward.”_ Yellow stopped the recording.

“That witch!”, Giga-Khimaira growled. “I’ll come back for you later. For now, I have business to attend to.” He turned around and teleported away. At that point, the mutant once more loomed overhead, firing at the Qidengers.

Inside Kijuu Lion, Takuto, now detransformed, began to pull himself up. “Guys, you’ve got to defeat that thing without me.” He urged. “I’m counting on you.”

“Well, looks like it’s time to try this.”, QidenTora opened his relay panel and pressed button 1.

 **Kijuu Tiger!** The giant robotic cat appeared from within the KijuuSlasher.

“Let’s get in there too.”, QidenBlack led the others in taking out their JuuKeitais and dialling.

 **Summon! Kijuume! Kijuu Falcon! Kijuuki! Kijuuguar!** The 4 Kijuu appeared alongside Kijuu Tiger, with their pilots taking their places.

“Now, let’s try it out.” QidenTora pressed the 3rd button on his relay. “Kijuu Busou!”

 **Tiger Armament!** Kijuu Tiger partially turned into its humanoid mode. Kijuu Falcon then inverted its wings and attached as an arm onto the left shoulder. Then Kijuuki became the left leg, with the sword nose detaching and flying off. Kijuume detached its shell and folded its body outward to become the right leg, and Kijuuguar detached its head to reveal a hand, with the body becoming the right arm. The sword and the shield then combined into a gun that the robot took in its hand as the Jaguar head opened to become a helmet, which landed on the head of the robot. “Torai’Oh, Combination Complete!”

The mutant growled, firing its mouth beam once more. Torai’Oh merely walked through all of this, before proceeding to punch the creature back. It then leapt up, initiating a diving kick that downed the mutant. “This new combo is awesome.”, Mio squeed.

“We need to finish this now, before any more damage occurs.”, Kamijo noted. “Takumi-san, do it now.”

“Alright.” Takumi pressed button 4. “ _Strident Blazer!_ ”

**Tiger Stardust!**

Torai’Oh wielded it’s gun, charging it with lightning, before firing a beam of electricity at the mutant, tearing it to pieces and incinerating the remains. “Got you!”, everyone declared.

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, Dimayta and Megaro observed this. “So even with all that power, Calam still managed to lose to the Qidengers.”, Megaro noted. “I’m going to have to recalibrate the power of my later experiments.”

“All that power and still such a disappointment.”, Dimayta tutted. “Calam got what he deserved.”

“Don’t you dare talk about my father like that, you witch.” Both turned around to see Giga-Khimaira entering the room. “I know what you did to him. And I’m here to pay you back in full.”

Before he could make good on his threat, he was electrocuted by a machine behind him and knocked out. “Now, I have access to his magnificent genes.” Megaro laughed with glee at the thought of the experiments he could conduct.

* * *

In her own chambers, Moboroshina entered, planning to ask for guidance. “Kagami, the Qidengers have unlocked a new power and destroyed one of my warriors. What should I do?” But instead of an answer, she was greeted by her own reflection, with nothing happening. “Kagami? KAGAMI!?! WHERE ARE YOU?”

* * *

Down on Earth, the 4 Qidengers returned to where QidenTora had been situated, only to find him gone. “I thought Takumi-san would be joining us for good this time.”, Mio said sadly.

“Perhaps he will join us sometime.”, Wataru said to cheer her up. “He must have his reasons not to join us.”

“Yo, guys.” Everyone was interrupted by the arrival of Takuto, who everyone was quick to embrace. “It took me a while to get out of Kijuu Lion, but I saw everything that happened. You all did great.”

And so the Qidengers went out to celebrate their victory, little knowing of what was soon to come.

* * *

_Dimayta and Megaro target the Qidengers with their latest warriors, the Kyōka Vorjuujin, created by merging the power of Vorjuu with the genes of Giga-Khimaira. As the new foes stump our heroes, Kamijo and Mio find a mysterious pair watching them. And then, something happens to Takumi. Join us next time for “New Foes! The Kyōka Vorjuujin Are Born!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the week-long break, but I needed to think through some elements of the story in further detail. Things should be getting back to normal now.


	15. New Foes! The Kyōka Vorjuujin Are Born!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Megaro and Dimayta unleash a new type of monster that overwhelms our heroes. Meanwhile, Kamijo and Mio both meet mysterious strangers.

In his lab, Megaro had bought up a graphic of two different DNA strands to demonstrate to Dimayta. “As you can see, the DNA pattern of Ginga-Khimaira is almost identical to that of the Vorjuu you keep in your zoo.”, he noted

“How interesting.”, both turned around to see Oomikaoo walking into the room. “If they’re so similar, then why is it that Ginga-Khimaira was so much smarter than any Vorjuu we’ve sent out?”

“We’ve worked that out as well.”, Dimayta answered. “The DNA sample we took from Giga-Khimaira…’s body” she added, trying to maintain the guise of Ginga-Khimaira having been defeated by the Qidengers “contains an extra enzyme that enhances his intelligence and strength. If we add this enzyme to the Vorjuu, along with some artificial limbs for enhanced power, then we can create something we call a Kyōka (modified) Vorjuujin.”

“Interesting.”, Oomikaoo noted. “You have permission to begin the experiments at your earliest convenience.”

Dimayta was confused at this. “Isn’t Moboroshina-sama supposed to be the one who hands out hose permissions.”

“Moboroshina-sama is indisposed.”, was all Oomikaoo had to say. “I am in charge for the time being.”

“It doesn’t matter who tells me to do this.”, Megaro declared, clenching his hands together. “As long as I get to prove my genius, I’m happy.”

* * *

In the city, Takumi felt something off. “Something dark is due to come.”, he stated. “If only I knew why I was getting these premonitions.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Kamijo was returning from doing shopping for the old man. “Who knew an old geezer like him could want to eat so much food.”, he commented. As he kept walking, he came across an older man, wearing a black leather jacket. A man who was blocking his way. “Sir, do you mind?”

The man punched him backwards, before sweeping him off his feet and grabbing the bags of groceries before they hit the ground. “”You should’ve been prepared for that.”, the man stated, helping Kamijo up and handing him his groceries. “You can never know what your enemy throws at you, whether it’s a fight or a game.” He then walked off. “If you feel inadequate, then you can find me at the location I gave you.”

“‘Location’?”, Kamijo asked as he looked at the bag. He saw a slip of paper with numbers written on it had found its way into his bag. “What could these mean?”

He then received a call on his JuuKeitai from the old man. “ _Everyone, two new Voldos signals have appeared in the plaza. Get over there quickly._ ” Kamijo put the groceries in his car and ran off towards the scene.

* * *

Elsewhere, Mio was also responding to the call when she bumped into someone. “Oh, I’m sorry.”, she said, helping the other person to her feet.

“It’s alright.”, the other answered. Mio could see she was a woman, middle-aged, wearing a pink vest with a black jacket and a red scarf. “I should’ve been more careful where I was going, just as much as you.”

“I do have somewhere to be.”, Mio countered. “I’m due to take part in… a ceremonial fight.”

“Ah, so your a warrior.”, the older woman guessed. “I could actually teach you a few things, if you meet me here.” She handed a slip of paper to Mio before leaving as quickly as she came. Mio took a brief glance at the contents of the paper (a series of numbers), before hurrying on.

* * *

The 5 main Qidengers arrived in the middle of the carnage. “What is it this time?”, Takuto asked. “Vorjuu, Bukikai or Kanjin?”

“We don’t know for sure, yet.”, Wataru answered him. “The culprit’s about to show themselves though.”

The smoke of the devastation cleared, showing a metallic dog-like creature with a beak, armed with a sword. “He doesn’t seem like either of our usual enemies.”, Hibiki thought. “If anything, it kind of looks like a tengu.”

The creature laughed. “Very astute, QidenPink. Indeed, I am the first of the new group of Kyōka Vorjuujin, Kishi (knight) Tengu. Ginga-Khimaira’s genes have evolved me beyond a simple Vorjuu.”

“This thing is a Vorjuu?”, Mio said with shock.

“It doesn’t matter.”, Takuto assured her. “We’re going to take it out just as easily as all the others. Everyone, let’s go!”

Everyone pulled out their JuuKeitais and inserted their Soul Chips. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Shishi! Kame! Falcon! Kajiki! Jaguar! Doubutsu Gashin!**

The 5 completed their transformation. “Kijuu Sentai… Qidenger!”

“I’m not impressed by your little act.”, Kishi Tengu declared as he brandished his sword. “Let’s make this intense.”

He charged into battle with the 5 Qidengers, who pulled out their weapons to grapple with the Vorjuujin. He managed to hit QidenBlaco all of once, but the others quickly overpowered him and hit him back with their own weapons. “Well, you might as well surrender.”, QidenBlue suggested. “We do have the advantage of numbers here. It’s 5 against 1.”

“Count again, Qidenger.” The 5 then found themselves attacked by a fast moving figure, which quickly revealed itself as a turtle-humanoid with a harpoon for a left arm. “You didn’t think that Voldos would only create ONE Kyōka Vorjuujin now, did you?”

“Great.”, Black grumbled. “Now we have to deal with two of these things. What do you call yourself?”

Kishi Tengu ran over to his ally. “Oh, so you made it after all, Kaizoku (pirate) Kappa.”, he said happily. “Now I don’t have to handle these guys alone.”

“Indeed, my friend.”, Kaizoku Kappa nodded, before turning to the others. “Qidengers, allow us to demonstrate our camaraderie.”

“Yeah.”, Kishi Tengu pumped his fists, as he transformed into a crow-like form and connected to Kaizoku Kappa’s harpoon. “We’re gonna rampage. Try and stop us! Vorjuu _Bomber! Set!_ ”

“ _Thunder!_ ”, Kaizoku Kappa declared as he launched the combined weapon at the Qidengers, blowing them back. “Heroes, shatter gloriously.”

QidenBlack stood up from the blast. “I won’t go down that easily.” He pulled out his Kijuu Caliber and inserted his Soul Chip. “Qiden _Powered Slash!_ ”

**Qiden Charge! Kame!**

The energy slash flew towards Kaizoku Kappa, but Kishi Tengu jumped in front of the attack and absorbed it. “Nice try, Qidenger. Let’s see how you stand up to this.” He held out his sword, zooming towards his opponent without moving his legs. “ _Slash Straight!_ ” The attack hit QidenBlack, sending him flying and reverting him to Kamijo. “We’ll let you off today because it was fun to turn the tables on you.”

“But we won’t be so lenient next time.”, Kaizoku Kappa clarified. “Let’s go, Aniki.”, he said to his partner.

As the two Vorjuujin turned and left, Mio was left thinking something inside. “Maybe I should try to improve myself.”, she thought.

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, the inter-dimensional invaders were celebrating their victory. “Those Qidengers thought they had the same advantage they always have.”, Kishi Tengu laughed. “But we managed to show them our real power.”

“They will surely think twice before thinking they can defeat us again.”, Kaizoku Kappa gloated.

Gelashi was the only one not happy. “Don’t get too comfortable with your brief defeat.”, she warned. “QidenTora didn’t appear to face you the first time. If he does the second time, there’s no guarantee he’ll fall any easier than the others.”

“You make a good point.”, Oomikaoo decided. “I shall accompany the two on their next mission. That way, we can get the advantage over all the Qidengers, in addition to demonstrating the capabilities of this reconstructed body.” He flexed his cybernetic arm to make his point.

“Let’s see those Qidengers stand up to that.”, Dimayta said, holding up her glass of wine for a toast, and then drinking it.

* * *

Elsewhere, all of the Qidengers had gathered at the old man’s house. All except one. “What do you mean Mio hasn’t joined us?”, the old man exploded at Takuto, punching him backwards. “We need all of us here to agree on a course of action.”

“She said she had somewhere to go.”, Takuto answered. “Something about ‘self-improvement’. I couldn’t stop her if I tried. She’s always been faster than me.”

Kamijo thought about the mention of ‘self-improvement’, but quickly left it, dismissing it as a coincidence. “We’ll have to do without her.”, he suggested. “After all, perhaps we can turn things around if QidenTora joins us in this battle.”

The old man shook his head. “It’s not ideal, but we’ll have to work without her for now. Our main problem is that these two Kyōka Vorjuujin are formidable when they work together.”

“Then that’s the solution.”, Wataru realised. “If we can separate the two and pick them off individually, then we have the advantage.”

Then, Takuto felt something. “I can feel a Voldos signal. It’s a lot stronger than the usual ones though.”

Hibiki was confused. “I thought you didn’t get those anymore.”

“That must be an indicator of how strong it is.”, the old man realised. “Qidengers, go!”

* * *

At a quarry, Mio walked into the centre of the site. “Well, this is the place.”, she thought to herself. “Seems like, a weird place to meet someone.”

It was at that point the woman from earlier showed up. “So, I see you figured out my little cryptic clue.”, she smiled.

“Of course I did.”, Mio nodded. “I knew the amount of digits you gave me weren’t consistent with phone numbers, but was consistent with a set of coordinates. All I had to do was find out the location in the coordinates and head there.”

“You’re a smart girl.”, the woman noted, before throwing her new charge a fencing foil. “Since you asked for some combat training, we’ll start off by working on sword fighting techniques.” She pulled out a sword of her own and began by crossing it with Mio’s. “Let’s begin, shall we?” She knocked her opponent’s sword back before hitting Mio to the ground with her sword. “You’re not bad. You just need to try and be quicker to act. If this were a real fight, you’d be dead in seconds.”

“I’ll bear that in mind.”, Mio said as the woman helped her up. “By the way, what do I call you? ‘Shishou’?”

The older woman put her hand on Mio’s shoulder. “I’m Rei. Tachibana Rei.”

* * *

Elsewhere, Oomikaoo and the two Kyōka Vorjuujin were rampaging once more, blowing up cars and sending citizens running. “This is so much fun.”, Kishi Tengu laughed. “Instead of hiding in the shadows, we’re rampaging.”

“Stop right there.” Takumi leapt in front of the three, prepping his KijuuSlasher. “I’m going to stop you here and now.” He noticed Oomikaoo among them. “You look different to before, Oomikaoo. Is it a result of that Soul Chip you created?”

“I know not of what you speak.”, Oomikaoo stated. “I have been recreated as the ultimate warrior of destruction.” His eyes glowed purple as he said this.

Takumi felt a slight pain, but recovered quickly. “Kijuu _Change_!” He transformed into QidenTora and ran towards the three. Kaizoku Kappa launched his harpoon at QidenTora, but it was deflected and he was slashed backwards. Kishi Tengu flew towards QidenTora, but was swatted aside into some crates. “Your minions aren’t up to snuff, Oomikaoo.” Then Oomikaoo’s eye glowed, causing Tora to clutch his head. “What’s happening?” Beneath the suit, a tattoo of a moth appeared on Takumi’s arm, glowing purple.

It was then that the other Qidengers appeared. “Looks like Takumi-san’s already got things under control.”, Pink noted.

“I wouldn’t be so sure.”, Yellow said, cautious.

Sure enough, QidenTora turned towards the 4, screaming violently. He ran over to the Widengers and begun slashing them down, first Black, then Yellow, then Pink. Only Red successfully had time to block. “Takumi-san, what’s happened to you?” QidenTora didn’t answer, merely continuing to swing the KijuuSlasher violently.

The other Qidengers swiftly recovered. “What was that about?”, Black asked.

“Who cares.”, Kaizoku Kappa stated. “It frees up our side to destroy you individually.”

“Good luck with that.”, Yellow said in response. When Kaizoku Kappa threw his harpoon, Yellow grabbed it and used it to throw the enemy over his head, going over to continue attacking with his Kijuu Magnum. Pink then went on to face Kishi Tengu, but found herself being buffeted by his crow transformation. But she managed to hold onto him, throwing him the other way from his partner and delivering a flurry of punches and kicks to knock him back.

That just left Black to face Oomikaoo. “So, we meet again.”, Black noted, preparing his Kijuu Caliber. “Well this time, I’m going to defeat you once and for all.” He ran forward with his weapon, bringing it down…

… only for Oomikaoo to catch the blade with his cybernetic arm, spinning his arm at sufficient speed to strip the weapon like a screw. “You’re predictable, QidenBlack.” He then sent bolts of energy through the remains of the sword, causing Kamijo to stagger backwards. “Whereas I have turned this body into a more powerful killing machine than it already was.” He fired a beam of energy at his target, knocking him back into Kamijo. “Goodbye.” He summoned a more jagged version of his previous sword, preparing to bring it down.

But as he did so, it was caught by a man running in, who used it to throw Oomikaoo back. Kamijo got a good look at the man, recognising him as the one who he had an altercation with earlier. “You…”

As everyone stopped fighting to look at the newcomer, he spoke to Kamijo. “You should’ve taken me up on my offer. Now you’ve made a mess and I’m here to fix it.” He revealed a small brace on his wrist. “In battle, just like in Shogi, you need to change your strategies.” He then pressed the brace. “Goggle Black!” He was surrounded by a purple light, which cleared to reveal a black cloth suit, with a white chest section bearing a yellow “V” logo, white gloves and boots, with a belt that had a weapon in a holster. His neck was black, with a white scarf hanging from it. His helmet had an ornate pattern with a black emerald in the centre and a silver mouth area. “Goggle Black, Kuroda Kanpei!”

* * *

_The mysterious newcomer, Kuroda Kanpei: Goggle Black. What does he want with Kamijo? Mio continues to train with Tachibana Rei, but will it be enough to defeat the two Vorjuujin? Look forward to “Great Science! Dynamic Tag!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea to include the Kyōka Vorjuujin was a last minute idea, based on someone’s suggestions for monsters. Similarly, the idea to have QidenTora turn evil was based on someone pointing out he was already a (inadvertent) copy of Kibaranger, so I decided “screw it” and gave him a “turns evil” arc.


	16. Great Science! Dynamic Tag!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kamijo is told he can’t grow as a warrior the way he is now, while Mio continues her training to become a better sword fighter.

_The Qidengers found themselves under attack by two new Kyōka Vorjuujin, Kishi Tengu and Kaizoku Kappa, who proved vastly overwhelming. While Mio left to pursue fencing training with an instructor, the remaining Qidengers tried to continue the fight with the help of Takumi. However, the latter fell under an unknown influence, driving him to madness. As Kamijo came close to losing, a new ally appeared to aid him. “Goggle Black: Kuroda Kanpei!”_

* * *

Kamijo looked on in awe of the man in front of him. “Goggle… Black?”, he said with shock. “Another Legend Sentai warrior?”

“I don’t care what he is.”, Oomikaoo declared. “He’s going down either way.” He raised his sword and ran forward.

“Goggle Sabre!” Goggle Black pulled out the weapon in his holster, locking it with his opponent, and managing to push him back, after some parrying occurred. “You’re pretty good. A shame that you’re using your talents as a warrior to destroy the Earth.”

“Spare me your ethics.”, Oomikaoo declared as he took a step back. “Vordorons!” He summoned a group of their henchmen. “Let’s see you take these down.”

“Iron Arm!” Goggle Black summoned a pair of gauntlets onto his arm, which he used to punch his way through the grunts, before making his way to the two Kyōka Vorjuujin. “Black Bunshin!” Goggle Black split into two copies, each of whom attacked the two, one with a punch and one with a kick.

“Damn, he’s a tough one.”, Kishi Tengu noted as he recovered.

“We can do better than him.”, Kaizoku Kappa stated, pointing at their opponent. “Here’s an advance notice. We’re taking this victory.” Kishi Tengu then transformed into his smaller crow form, mounting onto Kaizoku Kappa’s arm. “Vorjuu Buster, set! Thunder!” Kishi Tengu was then launched at their shared opponent.

“Black Dark Run!” Goggle Black managed to avoid the attack by seemingly phasing himself into another dimension, before reappearing behind them and generating a pair of clubs, which he charged with energy from the gem on his head. “Black Emerald Nunchucks!” He hit the two monsters once again, surprising QidenPink and QidenYellow with his skill.

“We’ll be back.”, Oomikaoo stated as he and the two monsters teleported out.

Kamijo pulled himself up, reaching out his hand to Goggle Black. “Thanks for your help, Sempai.”

Goggle Black reverted to Kuroda and knocked the hand away. “You fool. You wouldn’t have needed my help if you had been better at your job.” He then turned to Yellow and Pink. “Now then, I’d like a word with your benefactor.”

* * *

Elsewhere, QidenRed was still struggling to hold off QidenTora. “Takumi-san!”, Red called out. “Please wake up.” QidenTora merely growled as he continued to hit his opponent with increasing ferocity. “What’s happened to you?”

“Unite… Unite!”, QidenTora gurgled out. “Takuto!” He began charging forward once again.

“Looks like this is the best way to stop you.”, QidenRed leapt forward and grabbed the KijuuSlasher, forcibly pulling it off and reverting his opponent back into Takumi. But this didn’t stop the latter, who merely kept charging, unable to stop. “Takumi-san! Wait!”

“Takuto-san.” Red was interrupted as Hibiki, Wataru, Kamijo and someone he didn’t recognise came running towards him. “What happened?”, the former asked. “Where’s Takumi?”

“He took off.”, Takuto said in response as he undid his transformation. “But I managed to recover this at least, in case we need Kijuu Tiger.” He presented the KijuuSlasher, before calling attention to their apparent new member. “Who’s he?”

“Let’s just Ah I’m a friend of yours.”, Kuroda answered him. “A friend who’ll be taking the place of your friend, Kamijo Ryosuke.”

“What?”, the subject of the conversation reacted.

“If you can’t win against an opponent you already defeated once, then you’re not fit to call yourself a warrior.” He held out his hand, into which Kamijo placed his JuuKeitai, before leaving. “I’ll give this back to him. But for now, we need to find those two monsters and destroy them. How do you locate them?”

“Normally, I have a feeling.”, Takuto answered. “But it only happens when they’re actually attacking, so we’ll have to wait.”

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, the two Kyōka Vorjuujin were being blasted with energy by Oomikaoo. “You fools. The two of you couldn’t defeat one old man.”, he berated.

“With respect,” Gelashi interrupted “we’ve been dealing with people like that old man in some of our battles. They not only have powers similar to the Qidengers, but they pass on their powers in a form that allows the Qidengers to use them.”

“Interesting.”, Oomikaoo noted, releasing the two from his phantom grip. “Kaizoku Kappa, I want you to go down to Earth and destroy the Qidengers. Alone.”

“Understood, sir.”, Kaizoku Kappa nodded and teleported down to the city.

Kishi Tengu was confused. “You don’t want me to go with him, Oomikaoo-tama?”, he asked.

“No.”, Oomikaoo instead indicated a map of the area surrounding Tokyo. “QidenBlue has been detected far away from the city. You and Dimayta are to locate and destroy her.”

“Me?”, Dimayta said in shock.

“Of course.”, Oomikaoo answered her. “After all, I’m sure a loyal and capable General such as yourself will have no trouble with this task.” He said the middle part of the sentence with particular emphasis, as if to say he knew she was neither loyal nor capable.

Dimayta was still caught unawares, but managed to recover enough to respond. “Of course, Oomikaoo-tama.” She approached Kishi Tengu and they both teleported down.

* * *

In the quarry, Mio leapt into the air, bringing her sword down on a rock, breaking it in two. “I did it.”, she called out with joy. “Tachibana-shishou, I did it.”

“Indeed you did.”, Rei nodded. “And to think, just a few hours ago, you had some major problems with concentrating your energy.” She put her hand on her pupil’s shoulder. “I think you’re ready to take on the world now.”

“Oh she won’t be up against the whole world.”, the two broke their embrace as dark thunder began to surround them, after which Dimayta, in her “Demon General” form and Kishi Tengu made their appearance. “Just the two of us.”, the latter of the two stated.

Mio instantly adopted a defensive pose. “Tachibana-shishou. Get to safety, I can handle these guys.” She pulled out her JuuKeitai and Soul Chip.

Rei was momentarily shocked, but quickly smiled. “You know, I was about to say the same thing to you.”, she showed off a brace on her left arm, which Mio felt looked retro. “But now, how about I share a piece of the action with you?”

Dimayta was shocked. “It can’t be! You’re-!”

“Dynaman!” Tachibana Rei pressed the brace, causing a suit to appear on her body. It was mostly pink, with the legs and most of the arms being white. “DynaPink!”

Mio was shocked, but she shook it off, having already known there were others out there like her. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Kajiki! Doubutsu Gashin!**

Mio was transformed into QidenBlue, drawing her weapon. “Kijuu Caliber!”

DynaPink likewise drew her weapon. “Rose Saber!” The two then ran at their enemies, brandishing their swords.

* * *

In the city, Kaizoku Kappa had begun a rampage, firing a cannon on his arm. “Qidengers! Come out and face me!”

“We’re right here.”, Wataru called out, as the three Qidengers and Kuroda came running. “For the record, you could’ve just asked us to come to you.”

“You were right about that Takuto kid.”, Kuroda noted. “Now then, let’s go.”

“Kijuu Henge!”

“Goggle Black!”

The 4 transformed, drawing their weapons and running in to fight Kaizoku Kappa, who deployed a cutlass from his cannon arm to cross blades with them.

* * *

Elsewhere, Kamijo was walking down the street, thinking back on Kuroda’s words to him. “‘If you can’t wing against an opponent you already defeated once’. What does he mean by that?”, he pondered to himself.

He then heard a noise and turned around to see a little boy trying to retrieve his frisbee from a fence. One that was over twice the size of the boy himself. “Come on.”, the boy yelled. “Come down.”

“That won’t work at all.”, Kamijo came over. “You need to try something different.” He went over to the gate and pressed the doorbell. In a few seconds, a man came and unlocked the gate. “This boy has a frisbee caught on your wall. Can you help him get it back?”

“I’ll do it.”, the man nodded, going to presumably get a ladder.

“Thank you, Onii-san.”, the boy said, hugging Kamijo’s legs gratefully. “I would’ve just kept trying the same thing over and over to deal with the situation.”

It was then that Kamijo had a realisation regarding Kuroda’s words. He’d been trying the same thing to defeat his opponents as he had already defeated prior ones with. And that had allowed them to get the drop on him by predicting his moves. He took off running, heading to the scene of an explosion in the distance.

* * *

At the scene, QidenRed, QidenYellow and QidenPink had been knocked back by Kaizoku Kappa. Goggle Black prepared to attack. “Screw Kick!” He leapt into the air.

“Oh no, you don’t.”, Kaizoku Kappa fired his cannon, disrupting the attack and knocking Goggle Black down. “My power is too much for you. Give it up.” He deployed his sword and brought it down on the heroes.

…Only for Kamijo to rush in and catch it. “If power isn’t enough, let’s try technique.” He used the blade to launch his enemy into the air, before leaping up and kicking him backwards. He then helped Goggle Black up. “Kuroda-san, I realise that you were trying to teach me the value of changing techniques in a fight. That’s why you changed up against all those different opponents.”

“Very astute of you, kohai.”, Goggle Black nodded. He then presented the JuuKeitai, complete with a new Soul Chip, marked with the Goggle V insignia. “I believe this is yours. And a little present for the road.”

“Thank you.”, Kamijo nodded as he prepped his transformation. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Kame! Doubutsu Gashin!**

QidenBlack pulled out his Kijuu Caliber and inserted his new Soul Chip. “Let’s see what this thing can do.”

**Qiden Charge! Goggle!**

“Let’s go.”, Goggle Black stated, drawing his Goggle Clubs as the two ran into battle.

* * *

Elsewhere, DynaPink continued her battle with Dimayta, while QidenBlue battled Kishi Tengu. “Mio-chan, use this.”, DynaPink stopped fighting to throw something to her ally.

QidenBlue caught the item, surprised to see it. “A new… Soul Chip?” This one bore the Dynaman logo.

“You’re open.”, both of their opponents called out, hoping to launch a surprise attack.

But, Dyna Pink and QidenBlue both moved out of the way, with the former pulling out another weapon. “Dyna Rod, Pink Shocking Melody!” She fired a beam of energy at Dimayta, knocking her whip out of her hand. “Rose Finale!” She launched a set of flower-like projectiles at her enemy, blowing Dimayta back and reverting her to her humanoid appearance.

QidenBlue meanwhile, managed to insert the Soul Chip, preparing her new attack. “Qiden Water Spout!”

**Qiden Charge! Dyna!**

Blue’s Kijuu Caliber turned into a large torrent of water, which she sent crashing down onto Kishi Tengu, knocking him back alongside Dimayta.

* * *

Back with the main group, the two Blacks had prepared their attacks. “Black Emerald Nunchucks!”

“Qiden Golden Slash!” QidenBlack’s Caliber turned into a golden colour, before being used to deliver a slash to Kaizoku Kappa, who was then knocked back by the glowing clubs. “You ready to surrender?”

“I’ll never surrender to humans.”, Kaizoku Kappa declared, once more firing a shot.

However, this was deflected by the other three Qidengers. “You didn’t think we’d let you two have all the fun.”, Yellow commented.

“We’ll help finish him off.”, Pink added.

“Let’s go, everyone.”, Red had everyone assemble their Kijuu Busters, inserting their Legend Soul Chips.

**Qiden Full Charge! Bio! Goggle! Buster! Kyu!**

“Qiden Legend Final!” The 4 beams all combined to hit Kaizoku Kappa, surrounding him with flames as he died. **Spark!**

At the Voldos Fortress, Megaro observed this in his laboratory. “You haven’t seen the end of him yet, Qidengers. Behold, the true potential of the Kyōka Vorjuujin.”

Kaizoku Kappa’s remains coalesced into a small orb, which enlarged and reformed into a giant, more monstrous version of Kaizoku Kappa. “I’ll leave this to you.”, Kuroda said as he stepped back.

“Looks like I’ll have to use this.”, Red pulled out the KijuuSlasher and began operating the control panel.

 **Kijuu Tiger!** As the giant mechanical creature appeared, Red leapt onto it and entered the previously unused cockpit. “So this is what it’s like on the inside.”, he thought, plugging the KijuuSlasher into the console and pressing button 3. “Kijuu Gattai!”

 **Tiger Armament!** Kijuu Toger assumed its humanoid form, before the 4 limb Kijuu appeared and combined onto it. “Torai’Oh, Linkup complete!”

The newly formed Torai’Oh clashed with the enlarged Kaizoku Kappa, with both sides managing to land several punches on each other. Then the robot dodged a direct attack and fired with its blaster, sending its opponent tumbling backwards. “Super Strident Blazer!” Red pressed the final button of the KijuuSlasher.

 **Tiger Stardust!** The robot fired its laser at Kaizoku Kappa, vaporising him completely.

* * *

From the quarry, Kishi Tengu observed this. “No!”, he cried. “How can this happen?”

“It happened because he was pathetic.”, Dimayta stated. “And so are you. Both of you are failures. In fact, I’m going to send you to join him.” She prepped her whip to strike.

But Mio leapt in front of the whip to take the hit. “You bitch! How can you turn on your own ally like that?”

“People like you won’t be forgiven.”, Rei hit Dimayta once more with her fencing foil, knocking it back.

“You’re still standing in my way.”, Dimayta growled, preparing an energy blast. “Be gone!”

“Noooo!” Kishi Tengu leapt into the way of the energy blast, taking the full force and having much of his chest blown off. An annoyed Dimayta left the scene, as the two ladies crouched over him. “You saved me from her.”, the Vorjuujin wheezed. “It was only fair… that I return the…” And then his eyes lost all light.

“He was our enemy.”, Mio said, almost crying. “Yet he still saved us.”

“Sometimes, good and evil fall second to people’s goals.”, Rei noted, speaking from her experience with Prince Megiddo, who as Dark Knight, had menaced both Dynaman and Jashinka in order to take control of the latter from those who had abandoned him. “Good luck in your future battles, Mio-chan.” She shook hands with her protege before leaving.

* * *

Elsewhere, the rest of the Qidengers had said their farewells to Kuroda and were headed to their own homes. “Well that was an eventful day.”, Hibiki said to break the silence.

“Indeed.”, Wataru concurred. “We met our new enemies and received another Legend Sentai power. Too bad Mio missed all of the action.”

“Hey guys.”, everyone turned around to see Mio running towards them. “My course was a success. I feel like a changed woman.”

“That’s good to hear.”, Takuto said in response. “I think our house isn’t far from here. Let’s go.” He set off to the left.”

“I’ll catch up.”, Mio called out, before taking Wataru aside and whispering to him. “I need you to help me with something.”

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, Oomikaoo, or rather, the being possessing him, pondered on recent discoveries. “The Legend Sentai powers. They could help me go beyond the Ultimate. I must have them.”

* * *

Down on Earth, Takumi continued to wander the streets, still in his crazed state.

* * *

_QidenTora is a wanted criminal? Koga Konzern sends its soldiers to hunt down Takumi, under the command of a newcomer. One who has equipment similar to the Qidengers. Just who is he? Look forward to Takumi’s Last Bow! The New Fighter Appears!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to Izout, not in the inclusion of the guest characters, but more the reason WHY they were included. 
> 
> I originally intended to kill Kishi Tengu along with Kaizoku Kappa, but I realised I could keep him alive as a recurring anti-hero. 
> 
> So, next time will be the debut of our 6th Ranger (Takumi is an extra hero, in case I haven’t made that clear already). Whereas Takumi had unintentional parallels with Kibaranger, this one will be my attempt at a TimeFire-esque character.
> 
> *tama: honorific used to denote someone who, while deserving of some respect, does not deserve full respect.


	17. Takumi’s Last Bow! The New Fighter Appears!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takumi finds himself on the run from Koga Konzern’s troops, eventually running afoul of a new warrior, QidenCheetah.

Tanjo Takumi woke up in the street. He rubbed his head and looked out to see he was in an alleyway. “What was a I doing last night?”, he wondered as he stood up and walked out to see his face was all over screens, along with signs saying “Wanted” and “Reward”.

“ _This man was last seen rampaging through a public farmer’s market, smashing up several stalls and attacking people_.” The newscaster announced as footage depicting the described events played on screen. “ _Koga Konzern has identified the suspect as Tanjo Takumi, who previously infiltrated their company grounds and sabotaged their Epithmeus project_.”

Then the screens displayed the image of Koga Tetsuya. “ _Rest assured, Koga Konzern are trying our hardest to detain Tanjo and bring him to justice. We have received special permission from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police to hunt the fugitive ourselves._ ”

Takumi fumed at his situation. “That rat, Koga.” He reached for his KijuuSlasher, only to find it missing. He slammed his hand against the wall and set off, trying to find someone he could trust.

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, the 3 Generals watched the news footage. “So, it seems that QidenTora has attracted the ire of Earth’s authorities.”, Gelashi noted. “An ironic fate for a hero of justice.”

“I’d like to see how the Qidengers overcome this one.”, Dimayta commented.

The only one without a detailed comment on the situation was Oomikaoo “Interesting.”, he noted.

* * *

In his office, Koga Tetsuya was laughing at his handiwork. “That fool Tanjo’s been something I’ve wanted to deal with since he ruined Project Epithmeus. His little outburst yesterday provided me with the perfect opportunity to do that.”

“Don’t forget he can still outpace you for now.”, a mysterious figure commented. He was dressed in a similar suit to the Qidengers, only with a C instead of a Q as his insignia. His outfit was red and black, with a helmet shaped like a cheetah with a visor resembling a cross between fangs and sunglasses. He had a firearm in a holster. “But he’ll tire out eventually and then, you call me in to take him out for good.”

“Yes, yes. That was the deal you offered me.”, was Koga’s response. “I provide you with the intelligence you need to hunt down your enemy. And in return, you give me the practical knowledge I need to construct my latest robot.”

“What about the Qidengers?”, the newcomer asked. “Surely you don’t expect them to just abandon their ally to your tender mercies.”

Koga’s response was to tap his nose. “That’s why I accepted your robotics expertise.” He then tapped the intercom. “What’s the status of Project: Gabriel?”

“ _The main body is 98% complete, programme is 99% complete, boot up relay is at 95%. It could feasibly perform well in battle if deployed now._ ”, was the response.

“Excellent.” Koga turned the intercom off. “Well then, Mr… QidenCheetah, was it? Everything seems to be in order, doesn’t it?”

“We’ll see.”, QidenCheetah nodded, before turning to the door. “But for now, I have places to be. Call me if you find anything.”

* * *

At Nanahoshi Academy, Mio and her friend Tenoh Kagura were discussing the news reports. “Why do you think that guy would just attack a farmer’s market?”, Kagura asked. “It seems like a strange choice to make a statement.”

“I’ve met Takumi a few times.”, Mio said in response. “He’s not the type of person that would do this. Something must’ve happened to him.”

This suggestion was greeted by semi-mocking laughter. “You’re always willing to see the best in people aren’t you.”, Mio and Kagura turned towards the source of the voice, Mio’s old club rival Shikuro Takuya. “We have footage showing that Tanjo is a menace, give it up, Mio-kun.”

Mio was annoyed at this. “No-one asked your opinion, Shinigami.”, she blurted out. ‘Shinigami’ was the nickname she had given Takuya for his habit of basically preventing her chances at getting into some clubs. “I’ll prove that Takumi-san isn’t a bad person, no matter what it takes.” With that said, she stormed out.

“Mio-kun, wait!”, Kagura called out, running after her friend, only stopping to give Takuya a dirty look. “You shouldn’t have riled her up like that, you jerk.”

As she took off, Takuya simply sat back and laughed. “So you think you can find Tanjo Takumi, eh? Well then, go right ahead.”

* * *

Later, at the old man’s mansion, the five main Qidengers and Rin the elderly housekeeper were gathered, with all but the latter discussing the matter at hand. “We need to do something to help Takumi.”, Mio urged.

“Well given that he doesn’t have his KijuuSlasher, he can’t do much for himself.” Rin pointed out. “Plus it doesn’t look good for his reputation with that footage of him circulating.”

“Rin-ba-chan’s right.”, Kamijo stated. “For now, all we can do is try and return the KijuuSlasher to its usual owner.”

Takuto nodded. “I can handle that, but not alone. We’ll all need to contribute to finding him.”

“All of us will spread out and look for him.”, Hibiki suggested. “There are 5 areas he could be based on sightings, and we’ll cover all of them quickly if we split up.”

“Good idea.”, Mio interjected. “Wataru-san and I will go on ahead to get a head start.” She grabbed Wataru and dragged him out of the room. “Have you had a chance to look at the Vorjuujin?”, she asked.

“I’ve looked at some of his inner workings.”, was Wataru’s answer. “But repairing them will be a tall order. Most of Voldos’ technology… it’s years in advance of anything on Earth. Suffice to say, I might need to get some help if I’m to repair him for you.”

Mio’s head lowered at this. “Thanks for keeping me updated. Now then, let’s go and cover Hakata and Sapporo. The others can get round to the other areas.” The two then carried on out the door.

* * *

In Nagoya, Takumi ducked into a cafe, taking care not to be noticed. “Do you watch the news?”, he asked the cafe owner, in a manner that sounded like he was asking an innocent question.

“No, I can’t be bothered with that sensationalist nonsense.”, the bar owner assured him. “I prefer to read a newspaper any day.”

“Oh thank goodness.”, Takumi sighed in relief before pulling his hood down and sitting at the counter. Unfortunately for him, one of the patrons DID recognise him and left the building. “I’d like a drink please. A large one.”

* * *

In the alley next to the cafe, the customer took out his phone and dialled. “Hello, Koga Konzern? I’ve found that guy you’re looking for. He’s in Nagoya. Send whoever necessary to take him in.”

It just so happened that Takuto was also in the area on patrol. And he overheard the man making his call and intercepted him. “Hey, what’s your problem man?”, he growled.

* * *

In the cafe, Takumi was finishing his drink and left some coins for the manager. “Keep the change.”, he insisted as he left. As he walked out, he saw Takuto approaching and tackling him down. “Takuto-san, what’re you doing here?”

“You need to get out of sight.”, Takuto urged him. “The Koga troops are on their way here.”

But they were too late. Men clad in leather from head to toe, with eye masks and machine guns, approached. “Tanjo Takumi. You will come with us quietly or be shot. Which will it be?”

Takuto handed Takumi his KijuuSlasher. “You’ll need this to make your decision, I think.”, he commented.

Takumi nodded as he donned the device. “Indeed I will.”, he said as he inserted his Soul Chip. “Kijuu Change!” He ran forward, transforming into QidenTora and delivering several punches to the soldiers, who proceeded to open fire on him, only to have the bullets deflected by the suit as he continued to knock them down. “The answer is ‘no’. I’m not going with you.”

“That’s okay.”, the figure known as QidenCheetah said as he stepped forward, pulling out his firearm. “Because I don’t want you to go anywhere. Ever again.”

“Bring it.”, Tora growled as he ran forward, with Cheetah firing his weapon at his foe as Takuto looked on.

* * *

Elsewhere, the other Qidengers, on a call from Takuto, were on the way to Nagoya in their vehicles. “Let’s hurry.”, QidenYellow urged. “Who knows what could happen?”

“You should be more concerned for yourselves.” The 4 vehicles were then knocked down and the pilots ejected onto the ground. The source of this disruption, a golden, armoured robot with a pair of wings hat retracted into its body landed nearby and walked towards them. “Target, located.”

“Who’s this clown?”, Black said with frustration.

“I am Koga Konzern’s enforcer of peace, Gabriel.”, the robot nodded. “You have been deemed an obstruction to the peace and will be eliminated as such.” He raised his hand and aimed at the Qidengers, firing a beam from it.

Yellow took the shot and stepped forward. “I see Koga’s still at it with his pretentious naming. But it doesn’t mean much.” He raised his Kijuu Magnum and fired at Gabriel, only for the shot to have little effect. “What the-?”

“None of your weapons can do damage to me.”, Gabriel stated as he took a hit from both Black and Blues’ Kijuu Calibers. “My armour is made from the hardest metal in the universe.” He leapt into the air, with his wings being deployed. “You can’t hope to stop me.” He fired his laser at the 4, sending them flying.

“How are we… going to get out of this?”, Pink asked as she wreathed on the floor in pain. “If only… the other two were here.”

* * *

Elsewhere, QidenTora and QidenCheetah were still engaged in their battle. “Let’s take things up a notch.”, Cheetah commented, pulling a trigger on the back of his weapon, causing a pair of claws to fold out of the weapon.

**Ki-Bang!**

“Funny, I was thinking the same thing.”, Tora nodded, combining his KijuuSlasher with his Kijuu Caliber.

**Juu Sai!**

The two then crossed weapons, as Takuto looked on. “Stop it!”, he yelled. “Why are you fighting each other? What is this for?”

A purple moth tattoo glowed on Takumi’s arm. “Destroy! I must destroy!”

“Destroy! Destroy! Destroy!”, QidenCheetah growled, as an identical tattoo on his arm also glowed.

Takuto could no longer hold himself back. He inserted his Soul Chip into his JuuKeitai. “Kijuu Henge!”

**Shishi! Doubutsu Gashin!**

Now transformed, QidenRed threw himself between the two fighters. “Stop it. You don’t have to fight.”

Then, the Bioman Chip in his belt, along with the Go-Onger Chip in QidenTora’s, zapped the latter with energy, causing the tattoo to stop glowing. “Huh, what happened?”, he asked. “That wasn’t me.”

“Humph, that won’t stop me.”, QidenCheetah stated, aiming his weapon. He pressed a button on the handle three times. “Kijuu Blaster, Ultimate End!”

**Boomer-bang! Bang! BANG!**

The two claws glowed with energy, before detaching from the Kijuu Blaster and spinning towards QidenRed. “Watch out!” QidenTora called out as he pushed Takuto out of the way and took the hit, his chest exploding as he fell backwards. Dark energy burst outwards from his body, along with that of his opponent.

“Takumi, what’s -?” Takuto felt a pain in his chest, as the same dark energy was released from his body.

* * *

At the Voldos Fortress, Oomikaoo, or rather, what was inhabiting his body, felt this energy. “ ** _This power… it’s overflowing into me. I’m finally free of this prison._** ” As his eyes glowed, the being left it’s body behind, manifesting as a dark smoke that floated away.

* * *

“What is this energy?”, Dimayta asked as she saw an alert appear on screen. “It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before.”

“It’s powerful alright.”, Megaro assured her. “And it seems to be coming from… QidenBlue.”

* * *

Sure enough, Mio was suffering from a similar headache to her brother. “Mio-kun, what’s happening?”, Wataru asked.

QidenBlue glowed with a blinding light, before standing up, as if possessed by someone or something. “ ** _You will not harm them._** ”, the presence spoke, firing a beam of energy at Gabriel, which knocked him out of the sky with his arm lopped off.

“Error. Error. Error.”, Gabriel could only state as his opponent came up to him and thrust her arm through his body, forcing his head off and throwing his body backwards.

Then Mio reverted to a normal human. “What happened?”, she asked as she came to. “I whited out.”

As the others wondered how to explain the events to her, Gabriel’s remains were surrounded with a red aura, which vanished, along with the parts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is what I’ve been preparing for a while, the death of Takumi. His surname literally means “birth” purely for this irony. 
> 
> I’ll confirm here that his fic is partially inspired by Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V, which is still my second favourite incarnation of the franchise (my favourite is GX, but SEVENS is quickly catching up). Takuto, Takumi and Takuya in particular are based on Yuya, Yuto and Yugo respectively. 
> 
> Sorry for the slightly late post, but the app crashed and I lost all progress I hadn’t saved, requiring that I start again.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my attempt at an original Sentai. I’ve got it fully drafted, but I’m currently lacking ideas for monsters of the week. Some help on that would be appreciated, but submissions will not be accepted until after chapter 3. 
> 
> The returning Sentai warriors in this fic are all either included in homage to fellow members of the community, or personal pics. 
> 
> I will not be doing a Power Rangers version of this story. You are welcome to do so, but I advise you wait a while before doing so. At least until I introduce the combination of the main and sixth Ranger mecha.
> 
> Please note that I am using eastern naming order in this fic. If a word is italicised, it is being said in gratuitous English.


End file.
